Iraq builds security fence along border with Syria

Iraq has begun constructing a security fence and control towers along its border with Syria to prevent Daesh fighters from entering its territory, a security official told AFP yesterday.

“Ten days ago we began constructing a barbed wire security fence and watchtowers along the border with Syria,” said Anwar Hamid Nayef, a spokesman for the Iraqi border guards in Anbar province.

“This is the first phase which includes constructing a 20 kilometre security fence with watch towers every kilometre to monitor and repel terrorist attacks,” Nayef said.

The spokesman told AFP that the fence includes a six metre wide trench and the use of thermal drones to scan the area.

He added that committees from the Ministry of Defence and the International Alliance will inspect the remaining 600 kilometre border area to assess whether the fence should extend along the remainder of the border.

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