An IS attack in October has triggered a crescendo of acts of violence against and displacement of Sunnis in a province in Iraq, bordering Iran, which has long suffered from cells operating in its dense orchards and Hamrin mountains. At least eleven people from the village of al-Rashad in the eastern Diyala province were killed. The attack was followed by retaliatory violence against local Sunnis, sparking fears of a return to the years of massive sectarian bloodshed. An operation conducted on 3 November by Iraqi security forces as well as additional security forces sent to the area has failed to quell widespread concerns and indignation. Reportedly several men were abducted and killed, followed by more of their relatives after they had been called to collect the bodies. Armed men subsequently attacked the Sunni-majority village, killing people, burning and destroying homes and farms, in retaliation for assumed ‘collusion’ by the entire local Sunni community with IS.