Jordan Military Unveils Border Surveillance With Iraq, Syria

In this picture released on Wednesday, May 20, 2015 by the website of ISIS extremists, an ISIS extremist aims his weapon during a battle against the Syrian government forces on a road between Homs and Palmyra, Syria. (The website of Islamic State militants via AP)

BORDER GUARD FORCES COMMAND, Jordan—Jordan’s military has installed the second phase of a surveillance system that U.S. officials say provides an effective defense against infiltration attempts by ISIS extremists.

Jordan plays a high-profile role in the U.S.-led military coalition against Islamic State which controls large parts of neighboring Syria and Iraq and also poses a threat to the kingdom’s security.

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The security system unveiled Monday includes a network of radar and surveillance towers that enable Jordanian forces to spot suspected infiltrators several kilometers before they reach the border.

Col. Robert Paddock, the defense attache at the U.S. embassy in Amman, told The Associated Press that with phase two complete, the system now operates along the entire Jordanian-Syrian border and that installation along the Iraqi border will be completed by the end of 2015.