According to church officials in northern Iraq, a mass grave has been discovered near Mosul that contains the remains of 40 Christians who were abducted and murdered by ISIS.

The Alghad news service is reporting that Popular Mobilization Forces units working alongside Iraqi national security forces in the Halila region west of Mosul came across the mass grave last Thursday. The report further noted:

“Most of the human remains were buried collectively. Some of them were for women and children. They had small Christian crosses with them.”

Iraqi security forces have reported dozens of mass graves in areas retaken from ISIS since the campaign to rid the country of the Islamist terrorist organization began in October of 2016. The remains of Yazidis have also been found near Christian mass burial sites.

ISIS held Mosul and the surrounding territory for more than two years, during which time the Obama administration’s State Department failed to describe the atrocities committed by the Islamists as genocide.