Maysan truckers face road shutdown threat as Baghdad probes provincial leader

Truck drivers in Maysan province risk losing access to main highways if the Sheeb border crossing with Iran remains closed. The provincial council head threatened to block routes connecting the region to the rest of Iraq unless the gateway reopens by Thursday. This deadline creates an immediate logistical crisis for local traders who rely on the route for commerce.

Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi ordered an investigation on Monday into Mustafa Daeer Mohammedawi, the head of the Maysan provincial council. The probe follows Mohammedawi's warning issued on Sunday. He stated that residents would resort to civil disobedience on all roads if the crossing did not open. He added that the province could become effectively cut off from the national network.

The Sheeb crossing, known as Chazabeh on the Iranian side, serves as a key commercial link between the two nations. Baghdad shut the site last Wednesday, citing a need for improved technical and logistical infrastructure. Government spokesperson Haidar al-Aboudi said the location lacked necessary technological preparations. An Iraqi border official told Reuters that the closure allows authorities to review security and install detection equipment to stop the smuggling of prohibited materials.

Adviser Abdul Amir Hassan Ali al-Taiban claimed that drugs and currency were entering southern Iraq through Iranian crossings. Iraq also pointed to uncontrolled groups, a term often used for Iranian-backed militias. Iran's embassy in Baghdad rejected these claims on Saturday, calling them false. The embassy urged Iraqi authorities to consider how such statements impact bilateral relations. Militias previously used an area near this crossing to target Saudi Arabia in September.

Lawmaker Mohammed Jassim al-Khafaji questioned the legal basis for the prime minister's investigation. He argued that only the provincial council can remove its chairman by majority vote. This dispute highlights the tension between central authority and provincial governance in Iraq. The province is a Shiite-majority area where Amarah serves as a commercial hub near the border.

In Baghdad, demonstrators gathered on October 25 to mark the anniversary of the 2019 Tishreen movement. Participants waved flags and demanded political and economic reforms. The protests, driven by young Shiite Iraqis, focus on corruption, unemployment, and poor public services. Activists also oppose the muhasasa system of sectarian quotas used to distribute government positions.

Rights organizations report that more than 600 protesters were killed, about 20,000 were injured, and around 3,000 were arrested during the 2019 movement. Iranian-backed groups suppressed the initial demonstrations. Hadi al-Amiri, leader of the Badr Organization and a senior figure in the Coordination Framework, recently defended those groups. In late August, he described the protests as sedition and said the Islamic Resistance helped preserve the political order.

Activist and journalist Muntadhar al-Zaidi called for justice over the killings and criticized the concentration of political power. The National House party, linked to the Tishreen movement, urged peaceful demonstrations to end corruption and bring weapons under state control. The Islamic Resistance in Iraq has accused the government of yielding to Washington's demands regarding border crossings and Iranian flights.