Iraq closes Al-Sheeb crossing as PM warns against sealing Iran border

Iraqi authorities closed the Al-Sheeb crossing, opposite Chazabeh in Iran's Khuzestan province, to passengers and commercial vehicles until further notice on October 21, saying security arrangements were under review without identifying a threat or a reopening date. An adviser to the Iraqi government told Radio Zamaneh the closure was meant to counter drug smuggling and counterfeit banknotes and to install new monitoring equipment, and rejected reports that US pressure was behind it.

NIAC Insights reported that AFP, citing two unnamed sources, said Washington was pressing Baghdad to close additional crossings with Iran, and that Iraqi outlet 964media reported the government intended to impose restrictions gradually, starting with Al-Sheeb; neither account was independently confirmed by an official US directive. NIAC noted that Iraq is one of Iran's largest non-oil export markets, with annual bilateral trade above $10 billion, and placed the closures alongside the US Treasury's "Operation Economic Outcast" announced on August 24 and October sanctions on Iranian industrial networks, oil transport infrastructure and an Iraqi bank.

Iraq's prime minister said closing the country's borders with Iran would mean economically besieging Iraq itself and would serve neither Baghdad nor Tehran, and that Iraq will not take part in any war and remains a meeting point for dialogue, Asr-e Iran and ISNA reported. Earlier, Pakistan suspended commercial traffic at the Taftan–Mirjaveh and Gabd–Rimdan crossings on October 17, stranding about 2,000 trucks according to the Quetta Chamber of Commerce and Industry; Field Marshal Asim Munir said in Tehran that the closures were temporary and caused by technical problems, though independent confirmation of a full resumption was not immediately available.