THE border crossing between Jordan and Syria officially opened to civilians and trade yesterday after being closed for three years.

The Nassib crossing opened at 8 a.m., a border official on the Jordanian side in Jaber said, but added that there had been no traffic so far. One civilian could be seen waiting to cross.

Jordanian state news agency Petra reported early yesterday that Jordan and Syria had agreed to open the border to all in a change from an earlier statement that normal traffic would not be allowed until a later date.

“We are fully ready to receive passengers and transport of goods,” Imad Riyalat, head of the Jaber crossing, told reporters. “We expect the traffic to be slow now at the start, but in coming days we expect passenger movement to pick up.”

The Syrian Government retook the area around the Nassib border crossing with Jordan in July during a Russian-backed offensive to drive rebels from their stronghold in southwest Syria.

The civil war in Syria began more than seven years ago.

(SD-Agencies)