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Smugglers Easily Cross Iraq’s Border

Despite the efforts of Iraq and the six countries bordering it, Iraq’s borders are easily navigated by professional smugglers.
A weapons dealer checks AK-47 rifles before selling it to smugglers transferring it to Syria, at his house near the city of Mosul, 390km (240 miles) north of Baghdad, February 16, 2012. The weapons dealers sell a rifle for about $1000.  REUTERS/Stringer (IRAQ - Tags: CONFLICT) - RTR2XY8B
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Khurshid, the khajakji (the local word for a smuggler), smiled when he spoke of the border. “It’s a fairy tale for domestic consumption only, not a reality, at least for us,” he said.

Khurshid is a Kurdish smuggler who is now “retired” because of his age. He and many of his colleagues have left the profession and are now in the trade business. They do not use the word khajakji because it connotes an illegal activity. But Khurshid believes he performed a national service for the Kurdish people, as they faced a suffocating, government-backed, decades-long blockade and greatly relied on smugglers for food, fuel and goods.

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