An Iraqi court has issued an arrest warrant for Maysan Provincial Council Chairman Mustafa Duair Abdulhassan after the prime minister’s office filed a complaint alleging that he threatened civil disobedience unless a key crossing with Iran reopened.
A copy of the Karkh Third Investigation Court order in Baghdad, published by Alsumaria, says the warrant followed a complaint from Prime Minister Ali Faleh Al-Zaidi’s office. It cites the second section of Article 224 of Iraq’s Penal Code No. 111 of 1969, as amended. The document says the court heard from the office’s legal representative and examined a CD filed with the complaint.
Al-Zaidi’s office said Monday that the prime minister had ordered an investigation into Abdulhassan’s remarks. The office said Abdulhassan warned that residents could resort to civil disobedience if the government did not reopen Al-Sheeb. It said legal authorities would determine whether his remarks carried legal liability.
Iraqi authorities halted passenger travel, vehicle entry and commercial trucking at Al-Sheeb on Oct. 21, Reuters reported, citing a border official and two people at the crossing. The closure was announced to last until further notice. Government spokesperson Haidar al-Aboudi told the Iraqi News Agency that the crossing needed further technical and development work. A border official separately told Reuters the shutdown would allow a security review and installation of equipment to detect prohibited goods.
The Oct. 21 closure of Al-Sheeb affects a route Maysan council member Hussein al-Maryani described to Rudaw as a main channel for supplies reaching Amarah and the province. He told Rudaw that much of the food and merchandise entering the area comes through the crossing, and that its closure had pushed up prices and weakened economic activity.
Rudaw also reported that Abdulhassan set a Thursday deadline for reopening and warned that residents could block roads if the crossing remained closed.
