Toronto Star
· collected 2026-09-24 · by Serra Yedikardes And Amir-hussein Radjy The Associated Press
Hundreds of trucks idle along the road into Iran from Turkey’s mountainous eastern border.
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Hundreds → idle → border
Bustling even in normal times, the countries’ largest crossing is now a make-or-break economic lifeline for Tehran as the U.S. navy blockades its ports.
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navy → bustle → ports
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has pressed to accelerate overland trade as the blockade limits the vast majority of imports while cutting off the oil and gas sales that largely keep the economy alive.
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that → press → economy
It’s the latest test of Iran’s endurance.
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It → ’ → endurance
Frustrated Iranian truck drivers spoke to The Associated Press at the Turkey border crossing, where lines now stretch for miles.
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lines → speak → miles
“I’ve been driving through this border gate for 15 years.
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I → drive → years
I’ve never had to wait as long as now,” said Muhammed Rıza Shiri, 55, who had waited four days to carry his load of rubber into Iran.
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who → have → Iran
“We had to wait at the end of a seven-kilometer (4.3-mile) line.
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We → have → line
We used to wait, maximum, for three days here.
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We → use → days
Because of the war, the waiting times exceed five days.”
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times → exceed → days
Iran accuses the U.S. of trying to weaken the country.
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Iran → accuse → country
“They are trying to create difficulties wherever they can, and they are holding nothing back.
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they → try → nothing
They are closing off routes, shutting down air routes, blocking land routes and trying to fuel internal divisions,” President Masoud Pezeshkian said Tuesday.
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Pezeshkian → close → divisions
Iran insists the pressure will not change its stance in negotiations with Washington.
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pressure → insist → Washington
Tehran wants the U.S. blockade to end before it allows commercial shipping to flow again through the Strait of Hormuz, where Iran’s grip has shaken global markets and oil prices.
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grip → want → markets
Iran had relied on the gulf for over 80% of its trade
Iran has a huge challenge as it tries to shift trade from sea to land.
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it → rely → land
Its economy relied on the gulf for over 80% of its trade before the war, according to Iran economist Mohammad Farzanegan.
uncertain
economy → rely → Farzanegan
Now Iran’s land crossings with Turkey to the west and Pakistan to the east are crucial in connecting with Europe and Asia.
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crossings → connect → Europe
Drivers carry goods that are vital to Iran’s petrochemical and other manufacturing that were badly damaged by U.S. and Israeli strikes.
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that → carry → strikes
Regulations, border controls, corruption, all these things would make the transit much more difficult and time-consuming,” Farzanegan said.
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Farzanegan → make → ?
Overland trade “would not basically be able to substitute or compensate for the blockade.”
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trade → substitute → blockade
At Turkey’s Gürbulak border, truck waiting times have more than quadrupled since the war began, according to data from the International Transporters Association, which represents Turkey’s international logistics sector.
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which → quadruple → sector
One Iranian official said the number of trucks has shot up.
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number → say → trucks
“Instead of 200 trucks, there are 1,200 trucks at the border, and the destination country does not have the capacity to accept this number of trucks,” Amir Roshanbakhsh Ghanbari, deputy head for a government agency that promotes Iranian trade, said in an interview with a semiofficial news outlet, ILNA.
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that → be → outlet
Ghanbari blamed the border backup in part on neighboring countries: “Destination countries are not willing to develop infrastructure because it is not clear how long this situation will continue.
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situation → blame → infrastructure
But an AP reporter visiting the Turkey border crossing on Tuesday saw road work aimed at building extra lanes.
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reporter → visit → lanes
Two staffers from a local road authority, who spoke on condition of anonymity as they were not authorized to comment publicly, said Turkey was improving border infrastructure based on a three-year-old plan.
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Turkey → speak → plan
Some truckers are protesting the delays
A Telegram channel linked with groups representing Iranian truckers and other transportation drivers is flooded with messages protesting conditions.
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channel → protest → conditions
Their low-wage work is further squeezed after Iranian authorities raised fuel prices and tightened fuel quotas.
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authorities → squeeze → quotas
“With the rising costs, increased maintenance expenses, high prices for tires and parts and, on the other hand, reduced cargo loads and decreased driver income, it has become very difficult for many of us to continue working,” one message read, warning truckers “will not remain silent in the face of this increased pressure on drivers.”
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truckers → rise → drivers
Akbar Sadigi, 42, an Iranian truck driver from Tabriz waiting at the crossing, said longer waiting times have cut his twice-monthly trips to once a month.
“I make half of what I used to make because of this,” he said.
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he → wait → this
Fuel prices for his truck have risen by 25% in Iran since his last trip, he added.
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he → rise → trip
“Some Turkish drivers can bribe and get ahead of the line.
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drivers → bribe → line
We can’t do that,” Sadigi said.
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Sadigi → do → that
Drivers said the customs line is even longer on the Iranian side, with wait times in the past month ranging from 12 to 25 days.
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times → say → days
Many blamed longer inspections by Turkish authorities of trucks leaving Iran.
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Many → blame → Iran
Akbar Yahyai, an Iranian truck driver who said his loads vary from machinery parts to chemical components, said he had been waiting four days.
“
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he → say → components
It’s a shame for us drivers here.
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It → ’ → drivers
There is no toilet or shower we can use here while waiting.
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we → be → ?
You can see it from how we look and smell,” he said, adding that he barely makes enough money to eat.
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he → see → money
…and 11 more, not listed.
The Aporia
