About the project
The Sapir and Ein Yahav sites are located east of highway 90, along the Israel-Jordan border, stretching from the Ein Yahav settlement in the Middle Arava to the Zofar settlement in the south.
In the late 1960s, as part of the State of Israel's fight against terror organizations, the IDF placed a strip of minefields along the eastern border of the country, whose purpose was to prevent infiltration into Israeli territory and to serve as an additional security measure in protecting the settlements adjacent to the border.
Over the years, the floods washed some of the mines away from the places in which they were originally planted - and areas suspected of being mined were created along the entire length of the Arava river.
As part of the project, the marked minefields and areas suspected of being mined were cleared, for the purpose of expanding agricultural areas and increasing the number of farms in the Arava. Some of the areas that were cleared were given to Zofar farmers in exchange for plots of land which were returned to Jordan upon the expiration of the lease agreements.
Current use of the area
The areas which were cleared are currently used for agricultural purposes and a new perimeter route was paved.
See more about the project:
https://www.israel.agrisupportonline.com/news/csv/csvread.pl?show=6936&mytemplate=tp2
https://www.israelhayom.co.il/article/112921