LONDON(RAHNUMA): Syria and Iraq reopened the crucial Al-Yarubiyah-Rabia crossing on Monday after nearly 13 years of closure due to the Syrian civil war, which spanned from 2011 to 2024.
The reopening came after the General Customs Authority of Iraq completed rehabilitation work on its side of the Rabia crossing, located north of Iraq and the Syrian Arab Republic near the Turkish border.
Thamer Qasim Dawood, the Iraqi director-general of customs, said: “The crossing holds significant economic, political, and security importance, as it will be used for the exchange of goods and commodities and the export of oil.”
He said it also serves as a transit route for Turkish goods through Syrian territory, helping to revitalize the region’s economy, according to the Syrian Arab News Agency.
The government in Damascus operates four border crossings with Iraq after redeploying in northeastern Syria since January, as per an agreement with the Syrian Democratic Forces. These crossings include Al-Yarubiyah-Rabia, Boukamal-Qaim, Al-Tanf-Alwaleed, and Semalka-Faysh Khabur.
