A concrete wall spanning 74 kilometers (46 miles) is to be built along a section of Iran's border with Afghanistan and help close a known illegal crossing point, Iranian officials say.
The wall is set to be 4 meters (13 feet) high and expanded with additional barbed wire fencing.
The border between Iran and Afghanistan is about 920 kilometers long. For over 40 years, thousands have traversed rough desert and mountain terrain to enter Iran and leave behind civil war and oppression. Now, they are fleeing the Taliban regime in Afghanistan.
Iranian authorities see the northeastern Central Khorasan province, as well as North and South Khorasan, as the top destinations for irregular migrants from Afghanistan. The region is also thought to be an entry point for terrorists.
Now, Iran's Supreme National Security Council has allocated a budget of around €3 billion ($3.3 billion) for the army to secure parts of this border with Afghanistan over the next three years. According to Iran's state news agency IRNA, the contract includes the construction of a concrete wall and a border fence in Central........