An Iraqi court issued an arrest warrant for Maysan Provincial Council Chairman Mustafa Duair al-Muhammadawi over his refusal to close the al-Sheeb border crossing with Iran. The Iraqi News Agency (INA) reported on Monday that the Third Al-Karkh Investigation Court issued the warrant against the council chief in accordance with the Penal Code. A court document showed that the warrant stems from a complaint filed by the Office of the Prime Minister, Ali al-Zaidi, following statements by al-Muhammadawi threatening civil disobedience and roadblocks, alongside a three-day ultimatum for the government to reopen the border crossing. Al-Zaidi's office had on Sunday ordered a probe into the chairman’s statements that had been deemed as “harmful”. In a statement, it stressed that the move underscores the need to respect the law. The arrest warrant was issued in accordance with the provisions of "Article 224 - Second Section" of the "amended Iraqi Penal Code No. 111 of 1969," which carries a penalty of up to "life imprisonment; a punishment applied to anyone who resorts to violence, threats, or any other illegal means against the head of state or whoever acts in his place." A member of the pro-Iran Asaib Ahl al-Haq faction, al-Muhammadawi had given the government until Thursday to reopen the crossing. During a press conference at the crossing, he threatened to "declare civil disobedience and block all roads linking Maysan to other Iraqi cities if the demand to open the crossing is not met." He also threatened to "secede the Maysan governorate from Iraq if its demands are not fulfilled and the movement of trade and passengers is not restored." He said that the technical justifications cited by the government for the closure "inflicted severe harm on the governorate's residents, drove up the prices of goods and construction materials, crippled commercial activity, and disrupted travel for medical patients." Dozens of truck drivers in Maysan staged a protest on Sunday against the closure of the crossing. Al-Muhammadawi also took part. Baghdad decided last Tuesday to close the Sheeb crossing until further notice. Government spokesperson Haider Al-Aboudi said the decision stemmed from an inability to complete the technical, technological, and developmental requirements necessary to operate the facility. However, the Prime Minister's Advisor for Tribal and Marsh Affairs, Abdul Amir Al-Taiban, said the closure was due to the smuggling of narcotics and counterfeit currency from Iran. The Iranian Embassy in Iraq slammed his remarks as "false allegations" and demanded that relevant Iraqi authorities take a stand against statements it claimed harm bilateral relations.
