Snow keeps Kele border crossing closed to trade despite partial reopening to tourists

RAPARIN — Commercial activity at the Kele border crossing between the Kurdistan Region and Iran has remained suspended for more than two weeks after heavy snowfall, despite the resumption of limited tourist travel, local customs officials said Sunday.

Raparin Customs Director Abbas Aziz told 964media that trade traffic has yet to resume at the crossing. “There has been some tourist movement at the Kele border crossing, but commercial trade has stopped and has not returned,” he said.

Tourist travel resumed last Sunday, but Aziz said access remains difficult. “The road on the Kurdistan Region side has been completely cleared, but on the East Kurdistan side, the snow has not been properly removed,” he said, adding that travelers are forced to walk part of the route to cross.

The Kele gate links Sardasht with Pshdar in the Raparin Administration. More than 40 centimeters of snow fell in the area in late December, effectively halting vehicle movement and commercial transport.

Meanwhile, Iraq’s General Authority for Meteorology reported that weather conditions across the country on Sunday included mixed cloud cover and rainfall in several areas, with snowfall recorded on mountainous terrain in the Kurdistan Region.

In the Kurdistan Region, forecasts call for cloudy conditions with light to moderate rain, thunderstorms and occasional heavy downpours, while light to moderate snowfall is expected on higher mountain peaks.