Solar Project Brings New Power Supply to Kurdish Village Hit by 1987 Chemical Attack

A Kurdish village attacked with chemical weapons in 1987 now has a continuous electricity supply after a new solar project funded by the Rwanga Foundation began operating this month.

Sheikh Wasan, where 211 residents were killed in the attack carried out by Iraqi forces during the Anfal campaign, has received 72 solar systems containing 432 panels. Local records show 281 people have returned to live in the settlement, which previously relied on irregular power from regional grids that experience outages averaging more than 12 hours per day in rural areas. The installation now supplies homes, the mosque, the school, the health centre and the Martyrs’ Hall.

The project was financed by Idris Nechirvan Barzani, founder of the Rwanga Foundation. Barzani said the initiative is intended as a practical response to the losses suffered by families during the attack, which preceded the Halabja bombing by eight months. Reports collected after 1987 show that civilians were detained, families were separated and many children died in camps where basic medical care was absent.

Rwanga Foundation data indicates that since 2013 its rural programmes have supported villages where average household incomes fall below the regional median and where public grid reliability remains low. Solar installations in these locations have created new technical jobs and have supported small agricultural operations through stable power for storage equipment.

Residents in Sheikh Wasan say the new electricity supply marks a turning point after decades of limited services. One survivor, who asked not to be identified, said the project gives the community a sign that past events have not been ignored.

Human rights groups tracking the Anfal campaign estimate that more than 100,000 Kurds were displaced across the region during the late 1980s. Organisations working with survivors have called for wider assistance from Iraqi federal institutions and international donors. The Sheikh Wasan project, funded through private Kurdish sources, is one example cited by local officials as evidence of community-led recovery efforts in areas that have received limited national investment.