The first Iraqi crude oil shipment has entered Syria through the Rabia-al-Yarubiyah border crossing (al-Yarubiyah, Hasakah, northeastern Syria).
Iraq’s Border Crossings Authority announced the start of crude oil exports through the crossing, sending the first 70 tankers loaded with oil toward Syria on Friday, May 1.
The head of Iraq’s Border Crossings Authority, Omar al-Waeli, said in a statement that the step marks the start of activating the Rabia-al-Yarubiyah border crossing as a strategic corridor for exporting crude oil, according to the Iraqi News Agency.
According to al-Waeli, the measure helps ease pressure on other crossings and diversify marketing channels, in addition to supporting the national economy and increasing revenues.
Al-Waeli said the number of tankers can be increased under approved regulatory and security procedures and under direct supervision by the relevant government bodies.
Work is underway to increase the crossing’s capacity and develop its infrastructure and logistical services in line with the expected level of activity during the next phase, according to the Iraqi official.
He noted that exporting oil through land crossings is an important option for diversifying marketing channels and reducing risks linked to traditional routes.
For his part, the director general of Iraq’s General Customs Authority, Thamer Qasim Dawood, said in a press statement that the start of crude oil exports through the Rabia crossing with Syria is an important indicator of the development of Iraq’s logistics environment. He said it also strengthens the position of border crossings as active economic engines that help support revenues and stimulate regional trade.
Dawood said the General Customs Authority is continuing to implement development and modernization plans at border centers in line with the requirements of the next phase and to improve institutional performance.
Before its official opening on April 20, the crossing underwent rehabilitation and maintenance work by the Syrian and Iraqi sides, while the first Iraqi oil convoys entered through the al-Tanf-al-Walid crossing (southeastern Syria) on April 1, heading toward the Baniyas refinery in the countryside of Tartus governorate (western Syria).
Iraqi authorities reopened the Rabia crossing with Syria on April 20 after it had been closed for more than 13 years due to the deterioration of the security situation, as Iraq seeks to boost trade exchange and facilitate freight and travel with Syria.
The move comes amid the continued crisis caused by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz due to the US-Israeli war against Iran, which led to a decline of about 80% in Iraqi oil exports during March.
Iraqi oil production also fell from more than 4 million barrels per day to nearly 1.1 million barrels, resulting in a decline of about 70% in oil revenues.
In response, the Iraqi government moved quickly under an emergency plan to ensure the continuation of minimum flows by restarting the Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline, activating temporary land transport with Syria, and coordinating regionally to facilitate the passage of exports through alternative crossings.
Iraq began exporting crude oil through Syrian territory last month via the al-Walid border crossing.
Iraq is currently working to expand crude oil export outlets through Syria’s Baniyas port on the Mediterranean Sea, making it an important passage and a gateway to European and US markets.
Strategic Crossing After Years of Closure
The al-Yarubiyah crossing, also known on the Iraqi side as the Rabia crossing, is one of the main border crossings with Iraq. It left the control of the former Syrian regime in 2013, before the Kurdish People’s Protection Units later took control of it, and it remained effectively out of service except for the passage of aid.
The crossing had been one of the routes for bringing UN aid into Syria through Iraq before it was closed by a Security Council decision in 2020, after Russia used its veto to exclude several crossings from the cross-border aid mechanism.
With control over it restored in January, the crossing returned to the forefront of government attention as a vital point for reviving economic and humanitarian movement, amid intensive efforts to prepare it technically and administratively ahead of bringing it back into service.
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