Truckers say Egypt prevents Jordanian trucks’ entry to Libya via Salloum border crossing

AMMAN — Egyptian authorities are preventing Jordanian transit trucks from entering Libya via the Salloum border crossing, according to Head of the Jordan Truck Owners Association (JTOA) Mohammad Khair Dawood. 

Khaled Shatnawi, a Jordanian who drives a refrigerated truck, told The Jordan Times that he and three other Jordanians were stranded at the border between Egypt and Libya for 13 days. 

Shatnawi noted that this was his first trip to Libya, as he usually transports goods to Gulf countries such as Oman and the United Arab Emirates. 

Dawood told The Jordan Times that the cooperation agreement signed by the Jordanian-Egyptian Transport Committee allows Jordanian trucks to enter Libya through Egypt’s Salloum crossing. 

Shatnawi, who arrived at the border on January 3, unloaded the goods he was carrying onto a Libyan truck on Sunday evening, after which he drove back to Jordan. 

He noted that this trip caused him and the other truckers to incur major financial losses. 

“It also harms our business as there are traders that expect us to deliver the transported goods at an agreed upon time,” he added. 

According to Dawood, many Jordanian truckers headed to Libya through Egypt have contacted the JTOA to report similar experiences.

Despite repeated attempts by The Jordan Times to contact the Land Transport Regulatory Commission, officials were unavailable to comment.