Ammon News - The Israeli Defense Ministry's Mine and Explosives Clearance Authority has begun destroying minefields in the border area with Jordan.

The Mine and Explosive Ordnance Disposal Authority carried out a controlled explosion of three minefields yesterday (Tuesday). In total, about 500 old anti-tank mines that had been placed in the area since the late 1960s were destroyed, according to Maariv Hebrew newspaper.

Maariv reported that the clearance and destruction of the mines join the construction work being carried out in the field by the Borders and Seam Directorate, the Engineering and Construction Division of the Ministry of Defense, and the Israeli Defense Forces Central Command.

The total cost of the project is estimated at approximately 5.5 billion NIS and includes the construction of a multi-layered system along a length of approximately 500 km from the southern Golan Heights to the Samar Sands north of Eilat.

Maariv also added, the plan to strengthen national security and strategic control of the eastern border is a central part of the Ministry of Defense strategy, promoted by Defense Minister Israel Katz together with the Director General of the Ministry of Defense, Maj. Gen. (Res.) Amir Baram. This effort is integrated into a renewed security concept formulated in the IDF and the Central Command, within the framework of which a new regional division was also established to ensure the security of the border.