Iraq resumes Syria trade with 3 shipments via Rabia crossing after 13 years

Shafaq News- Nineveh/ Hasakah

The first three commercial shipments from Syria entered Iraq through the Rabia border crossing on Tuesday, Iraq’s General Customs Authority said, ending nearly 13 years of near-total closure.

According to the authority, work is continuing to receive additional shipments in the coming period, with procedures aimed at ensuring compliance and preventing violations.

The Rabia crossing, located between Iraq’s Nineveh province and Syria’s Hasakah, had been largely shut due to security conditions and military operations linked to the Syrian conflict and the ISIS period.

Its reopening on April 20, which makes it the third operational land crossing between Iraq and Syria alongside Al-Qaim-Albu Kamal and Al-Waleed-Al-Tanf, comes as Iraq seeks to revive cross-border trade routes and expand overland transport options after Iran and the United States disrupted traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, which carries roughly 20% of global oil flows.

The reopening also follows shifts in northeastern Syria after a late-January agreement between the Syrian government and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), followed by government visits to crossings in Hasakah to “assess readiness and reopening plans.”