Iraq reopens Syria crossing

Syrian and Iraqi authorities have re-opened a major border crossing between the two countries, which was seized by the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group in 2014.

The border crossing, which lies on a vital highway connecting Baghdad and Damascus, opened to people and goods on Monday.

Last week, Iraqi Prime Minister Adil Abdul-Mahdi authorized the re-opening of the al-Qa’im border crossing with Syria after both countries managed to restore security to the region.

The crossing connects the town of al-Qa’im in Iraq’s Anbar Province to the Syrian city of Bukamal in Syria’s Dayr al-Zawr Province.

Al-Qa’im and Bukamal lie on a strategic supply route and the crossing between them had only been open to government or military traffic.

The opening of the border crossing comes as both Syrian and Iraqi governments have mostly purged their countries of Takfiri terrorist outfits.

Daesh unleashed a campaign of death and destruction in Iraq and Syria in 2014, overrunning vast swathes in lightning attacks. Iraqi army soldiers and allied fighters then launched operations to eliminate the terror outfit and retake lost territory.

In December 2017, Iraq declared the end of the anti-Daesh campaign. The group’s remnants, though, keep staging sporadic attacks across Iraq.

In November of the same year, the Syrian army purged al-Bukamal and its surrounding areas of the remnants of Daesh terrorists.