Iraqi towns and cities in ruins, but olive salesmen dot the side of the roads.
Unlikely Survivor in Post-Islamic State Wasteland: Olive Trees
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Khorsebat (or Khorsebad) is a village in ruins about 10 kilometers from Mosul. The only business in the area are two men selling olives and olive oil on Nov. 23, 2016 in Khorsebad, Iraq. (H.Murdock/VOA)
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Historically symbolic of peace, civilization and honor, olives still grow in areas otherwise devestated by IS militants and wars near Bashiqa, Iraq on Nov. 23, 2016. (H.Murdock/VOA)
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Peshmerga soldiers taste olives for sale outside Bashiqa, Iraq on Nov. 23, 2016. (H.Murdock/VOA)
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"There's no deity but Allah (Arabic for The God) and Muhammad is His messenger"; "Islamic State will remain, God willing, and expand" are some of the slogans still sprawled on bombed out buildings in recently re-claimed lands near Bashiqa, Iraq on Nov. 23
