🔻Agence France-Presse: Iraq government under pressure to “close more crossings to Iran”

Hours after reports that two Iraqi border crossings were closed with Iran, Agence France-Presse, citing Iraqi officials, reported that the Iraqi government is under pressure to close more crossings and increase pressure on Iran from the United States.

The Shalamcheh and Chazabeh border crossings are currently closed by Iraq. Iranian officials have confirmed the closure of Chazabeh.

Agence France-Presse cited two Iraqi political sources saying that the United States is pressuring the Iraqi government to close “all border crossings with Iran.”

One of these sources, a senior Iraqi government official, told Agence France-Presse that “the U.S. Treasury raised this with the Iraqi prime minister during his time in New York to attend the United Nations General Assembly,” adding that “all border crossings will be closed—except one crossing in the territory of the federal Iraqi government and one crossing in Iraqi Kurdistan.”

Another source told the agency that “the United States has asked all countries bordering Iran to take the same action.”