Pakistan confirms halt to trade at Taftan and Gabd–Rimdan crossings

Pakistani officials confirmed on Sunday, 18 October 2026, that trade has been suspended at two border crossings with Iran, Taftan and Gabd–Rimdan, a decision that DIAR's earlier report said had begun. Bakhtiar Ismail, the administrative head of the Chagai district in Pakistan's Balochistan province, said the decision was taken to improve border management and support counterterrorism operations, and that the border will reopen "as soon as effective measures are in place"; he gave no date for reopening.

Shahid Rind, media and political adviser to the caretaker government of Balochistan, cited security concerns, preventing smuggling and making the border system more efficient as the reasons. The Islamic Republic's foreign ministry, however, had earlier spoken of "technical problems" and called the halt "temporary and precautionary".

Thousands of trucks and containers stuck at the border

Ayub Mirani, the former head of the Quetta Chamber of Commerce, estimated that more than two thousand containers are stuck at the Gabd–Rimdan crossing and that the losses run into billions of rupees. Hundreds of trucks carrying liquefied gas, rice and fresh fruit have been halted on both sides of the border. Before the halt, more than four thousand tonnes of liquefied gas entered Pakistan daily through the Gabd–Rimdan crossing. Reports describe a queue of about three thousand Iranian trucks at this crossing, with some drivers waiting up to 30 days. Passenger traffic through Gabd–Rimdan continues.

The closure of this route comes as the US naval blockade has restricted the Islamic Republic's seaborne exports, making land borders doubly important for Iran's trade. Exporters had earlier reported banking problems caused by sanctions in their dealings with Pakistan.

The closure of the two main crossings with Pakistan has left thousands of Iranian drivers and traders in limbo in the midst of the naval blockade.