In an effort to prevent ISIS from slipping into its territory, Saudi Arabia is constructing a 600-mile-long wall spanning roughly the entire length of its northern border near Iraq.
According to the International Business Times, the structure, which will consist of five layers of fencing and 40 watchtowers equipped with surveillance radars and night-vision cameras when completed, will run from the northwestern town of Turaif near Jordan to the northeastern city of Hafal al-Batin near Kuwait.
There will also be 38 communication towers and 32 military response stations that will be built in the barrier zone.
The United Press International reports that Riyadh has sent 300,000 troops to man the massive wall.
Saudi Arabia, which had previously built a 1,100-mile barrier along its border close to Yemen to the south, decided to now fortify its borders near Iraq to contain ISIS, which currently controls large parts of Iraq.
The jihadist militant group, which aims to establish an Islamic caliphate and condemns the Saudi Kingdom’s links to the West, stated that they plan on seizing the holy Muslim cities of Mecca and Medina, both of which are well within the Middle Eastern kingdom.
Though initial plans for the barrier was made at the height of the Iraqi civil war back in 2006, construction began only in September last year.
The ongoing construction project attracted international attention last week when unidentified men, suspected to be ISIS militants, launched an assault on the Suweif border post near the Iraq province of Anbar. According to Reuters, two border guards and a Saudi general were killed, along with four of the attackers.
“It is the first attack by Islamic State itself against Saudi Arabia and is a clear message after Saudi Arabia entered the international coalition against it,” an Iraqi security analyst said.
Source: Christian Today