THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published — Monday 17 August 2015
Militants have tried to sneak into Jordan from Syria by blending in with Syrian refugees, and attempts to smuggle weapons and drugs into Jordan have increased, the commander of Jordan’s Border Guard said Sunday.
Brig. Gen. Saber Al-Mahayreh said surveillance along Jordan’s borders is tight and that his forces can “spot a rabbit” trying to cross. The monitoring system consists of radar, drones and surveillance towers along the borders with Syria and Iraq that can detect infiltrators some 15 km away, he said.
The general said his forces have so far blocked all infiltrators and smugglers. “It is not possible for any terrorist groups to enter Jordan,” he said at Border Guard headquarters on the outskirts of the Jordanian town of Zarqa.
At the same time, he said he expects more infiltration attempts because the security situation in Syria and Iraq continues to deteriorate.
Sunday’s interview was followed by a trip to a Jordanian border post on the Syrian border, near the Jordanian-Syrian trade crossing of Jaber. Jordan closed the crossing in April, effectively ending overland trade with Syria, after Syrian rebels seized the Syrian side of the crossing from troops loyal to embattled President Bashar Assad.
SOURCE: http://www.arabnews.com/middle-east/news/792416
Categories: Arab World, Asia, Jordan, Syria