There were conflicting data on the situation at the Nassib border crossing with Jordan. While a pro-regime newspaper reported a complaint about the closure of the crossing since last Friday, citing the responsibility of “customs,” a customs official denied the order, stressing that the movement is normal at the crossing.
According to the regime’s Tishreen newspaper, the Nassib border crossing with Jordan has been closed for about a week. This has caused significant damage to trucks and refrigerated vehicles, which have been banned from entering Jordan since last Friday.
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Mahmoud al-Assaad, director of road transport at the regime’s Ministry of Transport, said this was surprising and new on the Syrian border. The customs department should have informed the Ministry of Transport if it intended to close the border.
Assaad added to the newspaper that there are cars that have tickets from the ministry for going back and forth, so the Ministry of Transport should have been put in the picture. This is especially the case since foreign cars have a specific period of stay that should not be exceeded, and in case of overstepping, they are fined by customs.
“He tried to contact customs officials to inquire about why this was happening at the border, but no one responded after repeated contacts,” he said.
Owners of vegetable and fruit refrigerators fear their goods will be damaged because the gasoline is not available enough to operate the refrigerators, which need 70 litres per day.
Diab Shadoud, director of customs in Daraa governorate, denied closing the crossing. He said in an interview with the regime-controlled SANA agency that the movement of people and goods through the Nassibb Customs” border secretariat was “regular” throughout the Eid al-Adha holiday until Saturday, which happened “with ease.”
Shadoud listed the truck cars that crossed the crossing during the Eid holiday period. He pointed out the exit of 416 cargo cars, and the entry of another 1,080 cargo cars. The “Syrian-Jordanian Free Zone” witnessed the entry of 103 transit freight cars to Lebanon while about 2,300 private and public tourist vehicles (coming and leaving) passed, he said.
This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
