Across the broad swath of territory it controls bridging Syria and Iraq, extremist militants from the group known as ISIS have proven to be highly organized administrators.
Weeks ago, a small group of ISIS fighters and other insurgents entered the Sunni-majority city just north of Baghdad and were welcomed by residents, said one resident, Jassim Mohammad. But within days, ISIS fighters came with lists of "wanted" men, including police officers and local businessmen.
In Mosul, the militants offered three local figures the post of governor of Ninevah – the province of which Mosul is the capital – and each refused, said Laith, a civil servant in the city who asked to be identified only by his first name for his own safety.
The showcase of the extremist group's vision is Raqqa, a city of 500,000 in northern Syria along the Euphrates River.
During the month of Ramadan, it has distributed food and other aid to residents in Raqqa, Iraq's Mosul and other areas.
Until its Friday directive to Christians, ISIS militants have held off on imposing strict Shariah rules in Mosul, a city of 2 million, four times the size of Raqqa.
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