ABSTRACT
The Shatt al Arab is the river that results from the confluence of the Tigris and the Euphrates at Qurna. The importance of the Shatt al Arab is that it marks not only the boundary of Iraq and Iran, but also that between the Arab and Persian worlds. At the same time, it provides access to the major Iraqi ports of Faw and Basrah and the key Iranian oil ports of Abadan and Khorramshahr. The boundary along the Shatt al Arab originates from the Treaty of Erzurum. The delimitation placed the boundary on the left bank of the Shatt al Arab, leaving the waterway under Turkish sovereignty but allowing freedom of navigation. This alignment was confirmed by the Constantinople Protocol of 4 November 1913, which delimited the entire boundary in detail and stated specifically that the Shatt al Arab, except for certain islands, was under Turkish sovereignty.
