Islamabad, Pakistan – On a normal day, hundreds of freight trucks and vehicles pass through Pakistan-Iran border crossings, carrying goods and people. On October 17, Islamabad suspended cargo traffic through the Gabd-Rimdan and Taftan crossings in Balochistan province, citing security risks. On Monday, some goods started to move again.
Mir Naveed Jan Kalmati, president of the Gwadar Chamber of Commerce and Industry, told Al Jazeera that trade “partially resumed this weekend”. Border officials also cleared consignments that were dated from October 16 or earlier, goods truck association officials said. Haji Noor Muhammad Shahwani, central president of the Balochistan Goods Truck Owners Association, told Al Jazeera from Quetta that Pakistani exports such as rice and bananas were crossing the border.
Trucks loaded in Iran before the closure, including those carrying liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), were also entering Pakistan, he confirmed to Al Jazeera. They are coming slowly.” The halt of Iranian LPG to Pakistan created severe shortages and price spikes in Pakistan, which imports the bulk of its energy from the Middle East. Pakistan’s economy has already been impacted by shipping disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz caused by Iran and its response to the United States-Israel war.
Rizwan Ahmed, a customs clearing agent based near the Gabd-Rimdan crossing said customs had told agents to file declarations for the stranded trucks, which would then be released. He did not say whether this applied to goods loaded after October 16. Ahmed said his own consignment of exports had just left.
But Iran said changes to import paperwork introduced by Islamabad are holding up its cargo at the crossings. On Sunday, Iran’s ambassador to Pakistan, Reza Amiri Moghadam, said on X that Iran had placed no restrictions on exports to Pakistan, including LPG, and its borders remained open. The halt in trade between the two neighbours triggered speculation that the Pakistani step might have been taken under US pressure as part of Washington’s efforts to suffocate Iran economically.
Pakistan insisted it was done amid a deteriorating security situation in Balochistan province on the border with Iran. Gunmen attacked trucks waiting near the Gabd crossing on the Pakistani side of the border on Thursday. The military said 10 attackers were killed in operations around Gabd and Gwadar city, and one civilian died.
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