Special to WorldTribune.com

NICOSIA — The Lebanese Army has received watchtowers to help guard
the border with Syria.

Britain has donated four observation towers for the Lebanese Army to
improve security amid the Sunni revolt in neighboring Syria. Officials said
the nine-meter tower was designed to withstand weapons fire and monitor
arms smuggling and infiltration from Syria to Lebanon.

“Construction of watchtowers on the border is a sign of how serious the
threat of the Syria contagion has become, and demonstrates real intent to keep Lebanon out of the quagmire,” British ambassador to Lebanon, Tom Fletcher, said.

The towers, requested by the Beirut government, were based on Britain’s Sangars. Sangars has been been deployed by the British Army in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Officials said the erection of the first of four towers began on Feb. 25
in Menjez, located in the hilly frontier near the Syrian border. They said
the Lebanese Army placed the tower, which came in six components, in an Army position and reinforced the tower with fencing to stop rocket-propelled grenades.

Each tower would contain automated reconnaissance systems that could
monitor the border at all hours. Officials said the cameras could spot
humans and cars up to 20 kilometers, with reconnaissance recorded on
video for analysis.

“How Lebanon weathers the regional storm depends to an increasing extent
on its army,” Fletcher said. “The international community has realized that
deft preventative diplomacy requires a much greater effort to support,
train, and equip it.”

  Lebanon building border watchtowers against ‘serious threat’ from Syria