Passenger movement at Gabd-Rimdan has continued, while commercial operations remain halted. Pakistan’s Commerce Ministry withdrew an earlier order with immediate effect on Friday, and the chamber advised traders to stop placing new import and export orders until further notice.
Pakistani officials have described the closure as temporary and linked it to security, smuggling and administrative concerns. Bakhtiar Ismail, deputy commissioner of Chagai district, said the border would reopen after effective counterterrorism and border-management measures were put in place. Balochistan official Shahid Rind said authorities were working on a coordinated system to improve border administration and prevent smuggling, adding that reopening was likely once those issues were resolved.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei gave a different explanation, saying technical problems and precautionary measures had temporarily halted cross-border movement and trade. The two countries were consulting on restoring normal operations, he said. Freight affected by the suspension includes liquefied petroleum gas, rice, fresh fruit and other essential goods. The Gabd-Rimdan route had been handling more than 4,000 tonnes of LPG imports a day, while Pakistani rice exports through the crossing had increased in recent months.
The closure comes after Pakistan and Iran had taken steps to expand cross-border commerce. The two sides eased customs procedures, formalised Taftan as a customs station and notified new transit routes. In August, an Iranian delegation visited Islamabad for the 10th session of the joint trade committee, where officials agreed to keep crossings open around the clock, improve logistics and harmonise customs procedures.
Security concerns have intensified across Balochistan. A conflict-monitoring group recorded 62 security personnel killed in the province in July, compared with six in June, and counted 225 armed-group attacks across Pakistan in September, the highest monthly total it had recorded in 12 years. At least 20 police personnel were abducted from a van in Mastung district on Friday, and an army major was killed two days later by an improvised explosive device in Gwadar. Earlier this month, four people, including a customs official, were abducted from a coach in Chagai.
Iran’s Sistan-Baluchestan province has also experienced attacks. A senior provincial police official was killed by a roadside bomb near Zahedan on October 9, and the commander of a women’s Basij unit was shot outside her home in Mehrestan five days later. Tehran has repeatedly accused Pakistan-based armed groups of conducting attacks in Iran, while Islamabad has denied that such groups maintain an organised presence on its territory. The January 2024 exchange of strikes between the neighbours, followed by diplomatic efforts and expanded security cooperation, remains a recent example of how quickly border tensions can escalate.
The trade decision also intersects with wider pressure on Iran. Pakistan opened six overland routes to allow third-country goods to reach Iran after the United States blockaded Iranian southern ports. Washington later expanded sanctions exposure for Iran-related activity, including in shipping, aviation, gold, technology and digital assets, and Pakistan has said it will comply with applicable sanctions regimes. The border suspension therefore places Islamabad between its security concerns, its commercial relationship with Tehran and its cooperation with the United States, while no reopening date has been announced.