Northern border is secure

The order of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah to take necessary measures to protect the Kingdom and its people brings to mind the completed security fence project on the northern border.
The king’s order came after a meeting of the National Security Council, chaired by the king, to discuss the current events in the region especially in Iraq and their ramifications in the Kingdom.
Many citizens expressed their appreciation for the project. They wrote on social media websites that the idea of ​​this fence is very smart and has shown its effectiveness during the current unrest in Iraq.
Others said this project has already contributed to protecting the Kingdom’s security and guarding its territory from any threats. They added that this fence contributed to raising the level of security among citizens and left them with a good impression of the government of the custodian of the Two Holy Mosque and the Ministry of the Interior in particular.
Some comments praised the government’s projects and described them as proactive, planned in advance to protect the Kingdom and its citizens.
The northern border security fence project is one of the biggest in the Kingdom with its cost exceeding $3.4 billion. It has enabled the border guards to take advantage of the latest technology solutions consisting of border control systems, alarm systems and command and control systems.
The fence has the latest communication and security monitoring systems which help support border patrol in discharging their duties.
These technologies help prevent infiltration or smuggling of drugs and weapons and ensure that the Kingdom’s areas are not used as a station for intercontinental crimes.
The security fence has developed communication devices supported with sophisticated surveillance cameras, thermal cameras, mobile cameras with the patrols in addition to radars and sensing devices distributed at border posts. Control rooms at border posts are linked with each other through advanced communication devices that monitor all movement along the border.
These methods and systems allow for an exchange information and data between the command and control rooms in high capacities. Videos from surveillance cameras located on the border can be transformed through these means, as well as all signals monitored by remote sensors.
The data are then circulated among border authorities to arrange for the activities of border patrol to cope with any emergency. Such a system raises the efficiency of the Saudi border patrols and enhances their control of the border to prevent smuggling of drugs, weapons and wanted individuals, and reduce illegal immigration.
The security fence also includes thirty five constant monitoring towers in addition to moving towers erected at certain points called the blind points which are located in some of the valleys and mountains.
Border patrol is responsible for protecting land and marine borders as well as ports from smugglers. They also report any unusual movement on the border, and work on search rescue operations.
Mohammed Saad Al-Ghamdi, spokesman for border patrol, asserted that Saudi borders are safe, adding that land and marine patrols are doing their job around the clock. The northern border posts did not register any case of smuggling in the recent past.