The Somar land crossing between Iran and Iraq will close temporarily on Friday 13 November for "maintenance", Iran International reports, citing the semi-official Mehr news agency.
According to the report, Iran's Road Maintenance and Transportation Organization notified provincial officials of the closure. This followed a Foreign Ministry announcement and correspondence from Iran's embassy in Baghdad.
Iran International links the closure to Washington pressing Iraq to restrict border traffic with Iran. Iranian officials give maintenance as the reason. The connection to US pressure is Iran International's own framing and has not been independently checked.
The Times reported earlier that Iraq had rejected a US request to close all but two of its border crossings with Iran. A temporary closure of one crossing, announced by Iranian authorities, does not by itself show that Iraq's position has changed.