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Saudi Arabia: Planes To Patrol Iraqi Border
Riyadh, 15 Nov. (AKI) - Saudi Arabia is to use planes to patrol its border with Iraq. Plans are currently underway to start up military flights to protect the kingdom's northern borders on a permanent basis, said Major General Ali al-Anazi from the Borders Guards Command. "The strategy of approving this step is in its final stages," he was quoted as saying by Emirates newspaper Gulf News. He denied reports that young Saudis had infiltrated the border to enter Iraq, calling them "baseless". "All infiltration attempts whether to come in or out of the Kingdom were made by Iraqi nationals," he said, and pointed out that the number of infiltrators or smugglers crossing the northern border has dropped significantly this year. This decrease, he said, was down to the tighter measures adopted by the border authorities, including the use of heat sensitive cameras to help detect anyone trying to smuggle across the border. Saudi police are reported to have arrested some 700 Iraqis trying to cross the border illegally in the first six months of the year alone. Posted by: Steve 2005-11-15 |
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