Israel builds border wall
April 30, 2012Construction began Monday on a wall that is to follow a one-kilometer (0.6-mile) stretch of Israel's border with Lebanon. A fence is already in place along the entire border, but Israeli officials say extra protection is needed to protect the town of Metulla from attacks coming from Lebanon.
"(The wall is) intended to prevent firing from the Lebanese side into the Israeli side," said Colonel Amit Fisher, a border commander, on Israeli Radio."In the past year and a half there have been a number of incidents."
The wall is to be 5-7 meters (16-23 feet) high.
Israel announced the wall project in January, saying a recently constructed apartment building was at risk of sniper fire from the Lebanese town of Kfar Kila.
Although the two nations are technically at war, military officials regularly meet to coordinate security along their shared border.
In 2006, Israel fought a war against Hezbollah guerrillas in Lebanon, and a ceasefire has been largely maintained since then.
mz/slk (Reuters, AFP)