Iraq to close borders with Syria and Iran
Pastor Dale Morgan
Iraq to close borders with Syria and Iran*
Tue Feb 13, 2007 4:57 PM GMT163
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq's government said on Tuesday it would close its
borders with Syria and Iran and extend the hours of a night curfew in
Baghdad under a U.S.- backed security plan to rein in violence in the
capital.
The measures ordered by Shi'ite Prime Minister Nuri al- Maliki were
announced on Iraqiya state television by Lieutenant General Abboud
Qanbar, the Iraqi commander who is leading the U.S.-backed security
offensive in Baghdad.
Qanbar said the border with Iran and Syria would be closed for 72 hours.
He did not say when the closures would take effect.
The measures would extend Baghdad's night vehicle curfew of 11 p.m.-6
a.m. to 8 p.m.-6 a.m. Baghdad's international airport, which has been
closed down in security operations in the past, will not be affected.
U.S. officials accuse non-Arab, Shi'ite Iran of funding and training
Iraqi militants attacking U.S. forces in Iraq. American and Iraqi
officials have accused Syria of not doing enough to stop alleged foreign
fighters from crossing into Iraq.
On Monday bombings in popular markets in Baghdad killed at least 77
people and maimed scores.