Iraq closes Al-Shaib crossing with Iran amid US pressure claims

One official told Baghdad-based 964 media that Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaidi ordered the Al-Shaib crossing closed to passengers and goods, with the decision reported on Oct. 20. Government spokesperson Haidar Al-Aboudi said on Oct. 21 that the suspension was meant to improve the crossing’s “technical and logistical readiness,” while an adviser to the prime minister, Abdul Amir Taiban, cited drugs and counterfeit cash smuggled by groups and traders on the Iranian side. Two Iraqi political sources told Agence France-Presse that the United States wanted all but two crossings with Iran shut; Hussein Al-Shayhani of Asa'ib Ahl Al-Haq said leaders of the ruling Shiite Coordination Framework had “categorically” rejected a US request to close the crossings. In Maysan, the provincial council’s security committee head, Qasim Issa, said there was no security or technical fault at Al-Shaib and urged reopening, while truck drivers and residents protested the closure and rising food prices, according to Iraqi media. Iranian Interior Ministry spokesperson Ali Zeinivand said Iraq had given no advance notice, which a bilateral agreement requires; Aboudi called the claim “inaccurate.” The closure is the second time in six weeks that Iraq has restricted trade with Iran. On Sept. 12, Iraq shut Al-Shaib, Shalamcheh and Mandali after a drone attack on a Saudi pipeline was allegedly launched from Maysan; Al-Shaib reopened to goods on Sept. 17. Iraqi official figures put annual trade between the two countries at more than $10 billion.