Editor’s Note: The following look at the lives of tobacco and alcohol smugglers is presented in keeping with CRE’s commitment to ensuring that all viewpoints on contraband tobacco are fully ventilated.
From: Al Jazeera
Couriers who work for Iranian and Iraqi Kurdish smugglers risk shootings and jail time.
For decades, the Iraq-Iran border has served as a smuggling route, mainly to transport goods to Iran. Since the fall of former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, the border has been controlled by Kurdish groups and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, with frequent clashes.
Couriers who work for Iranian and Iraqi Kurdish smugglers face high temperatures and the risk of shooting by border guards, all to earn an estimated $25 a trip. On a recent afternoon, machine-gun fire is audible in certain spots along the border.
