The director of the Iraqi Ports Directorate objected to the Iraqi Municipalities Ministry’s decision to close Maaqal port, 10 km north of Basra city, according to a report from AKnews.
Salah Khudair Abboud told AKnews that this decision is unfair since the Maaqal port receives more than 10 commercial ships each day.
"The Directorate will stand against the implementation of this resolution because of its substantial negative impact on the economic returns of the Iraqi ports," said Abboud.
Shiltagh Abboud, the governor of Basra province, said however, "The government is determined to implement any decision that develops the urban situation in the province, and everyone should cooperate in the implementation of these decisions."
The Iraqi province of Basra, 590 km south of the capital Baghdad, has five commercial ports and two oil ports: al-Maaqal, established in 1916 by the British forces and handed over to Iraqi authorities in 1937.
[...] One set back has been the government’s decision to move commercial traffic away from the al-Maqal [Maaqal] Port in Basra, 550 km south of Baghdad, as we reported earlier in the week. [...]