Iraq closes Shalamcheh border crossing after airstrikes kill 1 Iraqi, wound 5 at passenger reception

Iraqi security sources confirmed Saturday April 4 that Iraq had closed the Shalamcheh border crossing with Iran following airstrikes that struck a passenger reception area on the Iranian side of the crossing, killing one Iraqi citizen and seriously wounding at least five others. Shalamcheh is a major land border crossing between Basra Governorate in southern Iraq and Khuzestan Province in Iran, heavily used by religious pilgrims and trade. The targeting of a border crossing's civilian passenger area represents a significant spillover of the US-Israeli air campaign into civilian transit infrastructure along the Iraq-Iran border. The closure signals Iraq's direct exposure to the conflict consequences and adds to regional pressure on both the coalition and Iran.