Anna Foster: Mosul's story is so important, and so hard to tell

The most important stories are often the hardest to tell.

For weeks Manal tried everything she could to save her dying, malnourished children. Every day, she cried and begged for the food and medical help they so desperately needed. But no-one listened.

For more than two years people in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul have been prisoners in their own streets, trapped in their own homes. The so-called Islamic State took lives and voices. Until now it’s been almost impossible to hear those stories, but as the gruelling battle to liberate the city stretches on, people are finally starting to escape and share what they’ve been through.

You can drive from IS-controlled territory to the refugee camps surrounding Mosul in 15 minutes. I wanted to use that time to paint a picture of the life people are leaving behind, a grim sketch of often unbelievable violence and crushing poverty. Everyone I spoke to wanted to let the world know their story. They wanted you to hear it.

From the flattened ruins of one man’s home in a former IS stronghold village to the teenagers recounting tales of the whippings and beheadings they witnessed, this is a tough listen. But it’s an important story, and it deserves to be told.

LISTEN: Click here to download the 15 minutes from Mosul podcast.