Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaidi ordered an investigation into the Maysan Provincial Council on Monday after its chairman, Mustafa Da’ir, threatened “civil disobedience” if Baghdad kept the al-Shib border crossing with Iran closed, according to Iraqi officials and media reports.
Authorities closed the crossing last week as they upgraded security and detection equipment, an Iraqi official told Reuters on Wednesday.
However, Kurdistan Democratic Party lawmaker Salwan Taha Akreyi told Kurdistan24 that Baghdad had shut the crossing at Washington’s request to restrict transit to and from Iran and thwart Tehran’s efforts to strengthen its militias in Iraq.
Da’ir responded by threatening unrest and warning that he would cut the province off from the rest of the country, giving Baghdad a three-day deadline before escalating his response.
Dozens of protesters also blocked roads leading to oil companies in the region to protest the closure, Asharq Al-Awsat reported.
Shiite bloc rejects Zaidi's call for investigation into provincial council
The Iraqi Shiite Islamist Badr bloc reportedly rejected the prime minister’s call for an investigation, arguing that the closure was harming the region’s economy and warning that prolonging the dispute risked damaging relations between Baghdad and the province, according to the independent Iraqi outlet Shafaq News.
Badr also reportedly urged the government to intensify efforts to combat alleged smuggling through unofficial crossings in the Kurdistan region.
The closure comes as the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz has increased Iran’s reliance on land routes through neighboring Iraq and Pakistan for shipments. Tehran has strongly condemned the closure, rejecting allegations that the al-Shib crossing had been used to traffic drugs and counterfeit currency.