JALAWLA, Iraq — Layers of graffiti snake across walls flanking blasted windows, and charred storefront signs and mangled, cheap plastic chairs litter the streets of Jalawla. The Shiite rallying cry “Ya Zahra” covers the only remaining wall of a destroyed home, while in another area the Shiite-Sunni rivalry is evident in the words “Ya Ali” written in white and “Ya Omar” written over it in black, respectively invoking the two sects' beliefs about who should have inherited leadership of the Muslim community from the Prophet Muhammad. Zahra, also known as Fatima, had been Ali's wife and Muhammad's daughter.

Jalawla remained uninhabited some four months after peshmerga gained control of it in late November 2014. Most of its residents are said to have moved to camps for internally displaced persons in neighboring towns while awaiting the chance to return. Others have gone to live in Islamic State (IS) territory. In 2003, Jalawla had been home to an estimated 30,000 people. 

Asayish, the intelligence and security force of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), along with the peshmerga and Shiite militia forces control separate areas of the town. A limited number of residents are allowed to return during the day to guard property but are not authorized to remain overnight. With their mismatched camouflage, the armed men's attire is largely indistinguishable from that worn by Kurdish security forces.

In late March, pickup trucks loaded with mattresses, furniture and other items from homes and shops were spotted in the deserted streets during the several hours Al-Monitor spent in Jalawla, roughly 150 kilometers (93 miles) northeast of Baghdad in Diyala province, bordering Iran.