Iraq: Border with Jordan to open soon, after year of closure

A diplomat says Iraq's border crossing with Jordan is expected to reopen in about two weeks, ending an 11-month closure and enabling the resumption of vital trade and a return of Iraqi refugees.
Safia al-Souhail, the Iraqi ambassador to Jordan, said today that the Trebil crossing is to open once any explosives planted by Islamic State group extremists in the Anbar border area are cleared.
Earlier this week, Iraqi forces drove IS out of the Anbar town of Rutba on the main Jordan-Iraq trade route. It was the most recent setback for the extremists, who overran large parts of Anbar in 2014.

Iraq closed the border crossing with Jordan in July, in part to deprive IS militants of taxes they impose on cargo trucks driving through the area.