IRAN - KOLBAR
Iran, 2017:
Everyday, hundreds of young Kurds cross the border between Iraq and Iran smuggling goods for a few dollars a day.
They often come under fire from border guards and Iranians shoot their mules as a punishment.
They also risk their lives in the treacherous mountain passes and cold winter temperatures on the Kurdistan Region. More then 100 kolbars have died in 2017.
The Kurdish provinces of Iran are among the poorest in the country and smuggling is profitable activity. Goods in Iraq are cheaper and thanks to the Kolbars’ operations they enter into Iranian market avoiding the tax system. Kolbars carry alcohol, cigarettes, tea, clothes, tires, TVs and electronics, walking for kilometers over the snow. The cargo on their shoulders can weight more than 50 kilos.
TESTI: Chiara Sgreccia
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