Road from Basra to the Iraq-Iran border

Road to the Iraq-Iran border between Basra and Khorramshahr The road from Basra in Iraq runs south-west following the Shatt al Arab to the Iraq-Iran border near Khorramshahr.

The traditional and most direct route from Kuwait to Europe was to follow the road from Basra to Baghdad, then to Mosul in northern Iraq, and then into South-East Turkey. However we had been advised against that route due to what the British Foreign Office called "bandit activities" around the Kurdish town of Mosul.

Instead we diverted westwards at Basra, heading to the Iraq-Iran border near Khorramshar with the intention of travellling north through Iran to reach Turkey from the North-East. We welcomed the opportunity to see Iran, but it meant we no longer had the opportunity to see Baghdad, the capital of Iraq.