HABUR

(Khabur)

The Habur border crossing point betweenTurkeyand what ultimately became theKurdistan Regional Government(KRG) in northernIraqwas the only legal entry point for commerce and customs revenues between those two because of the continuingUNsanctions against Iraq up to the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2003. Thus, it became a very important location. It still maintains this crucial position in postwar Iraq.

TheKurdistan Democratic Party(KDP) controls the Kurdish side and thus collects around $150,000 (some say as much as $1 million) per day, while thePatriotic Union of Kurdistan(PUK) collects nothing. Thus, these revenue collections became a major bone of contention between the two rival Iraqi Kurdish parties. The Habur border crossing point traverses a small river and is located just north of Zakho on the Iraqi side and just south of Silopi on the Turkish side. It is sometimes called the Ibrahim al-Khalil border crossing point, as there is a small town by this name just south of Zakho.