'Maybe we die together': Voices at the Iran-Turkey mountain crossing

KAPIKOY, Turkey, March 10 - At a remote mountain pass in eastern Turkey, travellers from Iran step across the threshold with a mix of fear, exhaustion and relief - arriving after a week marked by war, long journeys by train or car, communications blackouts and borrowed phones. Read more at straitstimes.com.

KAPIKOY, Turkey, March 10 - At a remote mountain pass in eastern Turkey, travellers from Iran step across the threshold with a mix of fear, exhaustion and relief - arriving after a week marked by war, long journeys by train or car, communications blackouts and borrowed phones.

Snow-covered hills surround the Iranian side of the frontier at the Kapikoy border gate in Turkey's Van province, where families and lone travellers emerge, many after days on the road. Hundreds have crossed in recent days and there is now a steady flow in both directions as the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran expands across the region.

Some say they fled because bombs were falling in their cities. Others decided to leave after losing contact with loved ones, travelling by land when flights were cancelled. Most carry only small suitcases, a phone without a local SIM card, and a determination to finish an already punishing journey.

New arrivals ask how to reach Van, the nearest city two hours away, and how to reconnect to the outside world. Some journalists hand over their phones so travellers can reassure family that they are safe. Each person has a different reason for leaving — work drying up, a sick relative to visit, or a life interrupted by conflict.

'PEOPLE ARE WAITING'

Ebrahim Eidi, 61, had recently been in Tehran and said many Iranians were waiting to see whether the government was weakened enough for protests to erupt. He said some believed opposition figure Reza Pahlavi — the son of Iran's last shah — could become a rallying point if large demonstrations begin.