In Iraq's vast western desert, about 200 families live in a hamlet called Al-Sahl that is largely cut off from the outside world. The villagers even claimed that the COVID-19 disease did not reach there because of the isolation.
Abu Majid, one of the elders at Al-Sahl laments the lack of health care. He recalled that a sick resident died on the way to the hospital in August.
"It's not easy to take them (to get medical help), especially at night. If someone gets sick, they die," Majid said sadly, as quoted by the IB Times.
Pregnant women from the village, must be brought to the city a few days before the expected due date. Even more surprising, even the pandemic seems to have passed Al-Sahl just like that.
"The coronavirus has not yet reached our village. No one has been vaccinated," he said.
The village's only neighbor is one of the country's largest military bases, Ain al-Asad. The base houses US troops and is a frequent target of rocket fire.
Majid said the villagers lived a simple and primitive life. "Our village is more than a hundred years old and there is still no electricity, no health center," said the man in his 70s, wearing a traditional robe and kaffiyeh scarf.
Al-Sahl is set in rocky hills and surrounded by palm groves, located about 250 kilometers northwest of the capital Baghdad. The nearest hospital is more than half an hour's drive by bumpy road. The only educational facility is an elementary school, and residents depend on livestock and agriculture for survival.
To communicate with the outside world, people use old-school cell phones instead of smartphones. 3G network alone does not reach this area.
Destroyed by war
Iraq is the second largest oil producer in the OPEC oil cartel. Yet the country has been ravaged by decades of war and corruption, as well as shattered infrastructure and public services.
According to the United Nations, about a third of Iraq's 40 million people live in poverty. The coronavirus pandemic and the fall in crude oil prices last year further exacerbated this situation.
In Al-Sahl, small, almost windowless houses with iron doors lined deserted alleys, sometimes punctuated by old cars or cattle passing by the wire fences.
The existing pump draws salt water from the well. Residents say they use the unfiltered water for drinking and washing, as well as for their livestock. Meanwhile, rain water is used for agricultural needs.
The proximity of this village to the military base makes residents wary when an attack occurs. "Once, a shot killed two of my sheep. They were grazing close to a live fire drill at the base," said Mehdi, a herder.
"But whether it's raising livestock or farming, there's nothing else to do to earn a living," said the man in his 20s.
Qatri Kahlane al-Obeidi, an official in the nearby town of Al-Baghdadi, acknowledged the lack of public services in the village. He made promises to connect Al-Sahl to the power grid and a water purification plant, and appealed to aid groups and international organizations to help build health centres. But the promise seems impossible to fulfill because the project is not clear.