Saudi Arabia plans 560-mile fence on Iraq border

SAUDI Arabia has invited bids for the construction of a security fence along the whole length of its 560-mile desert border with Iraq.

The proposed state-of-the-art barrier is part of a comprehensive, hi-tech package to secure the Kingdom's 4,100 miles of borders in order both to improve internal security and bolster the oil-rich Kingdom's defences against external threats.

Saudi Arabia is concerned the chaos in neighbouring Iraq could cause an overspill of sectarian violence and terrorism.

"There's no suggestion that the border isn't secure at the moment, so it could be a bit of an expensive white elephant," a European diplomat in Riyadh said.

The double-line fence will include 135 electronically controlled gates, fence-mounted ultraviolet intrusion detection sensors, buried radio detection sensors and razor wire.