The Israeli government distributed dozens of drones, rangers, and other equipment to farms on the eastern border of the country in a ceremony last week in the Jordan Valley.
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Missions Minister Orit Strock attended the ceremony held at the Zarzir Farm. Chairman of the Settlement Division Yishai Merling and Head of the Jordan Valley Council David Elhayani were both there as well.
“We continue to thwart the vision of a Palestinian terror state by establishing farms and settlements all across the country,” Smotrich said. “Every night, drones enter here intending to bring weapons to the Arabs in Judea and Samaria and Arab Israelis to create a new October 7.”
The ceremony took place just one day after the Defense Ministry established the Eastern Border Directorate, identifying the border with Jordan as an increasingly vulnerable corridor for Iranian-backed weapons to be illegally brought into Israel.
The Directorate aims to create a framework to “bring all of the state’s capabilities to the longest border area of the State of Israel,” according to Defense Ministry Director-General Maj.-Gen. (res.) Amir Baram.
Strock: Eastern border plan is 'reality-changing'
“Iran and its proxies’ plan to destroy Israel has indeed weakened throughout the war, but looking ahead, the raid from the east is a developing threat that must be prepared for,” he added.
“The Eastern Border plan is a strategic, reality-changing plan," Strock elaborated at the ceremony. “The plan will fix an ongoing injustice towards the most beautiful region of the country, expanding the settled area further east and west, doubling the size of the territory and the number of residents, and increasing the number of settlements tenfold.”
This is a continuation of Strock and Smotrich’s efforts to support farms and outposts in the West Bank. They attended several ceremonies together in 2025, giving equipment to farming outposts in Sde Ephraim and Meitarim Farm in the South Hebron Hills.
David Elhayani, head of the Jordan Valley Council, spoke directly to the farmers.
“Your location here today beyond the security fence is not just a ceremonial event …Your presence here, together with the equipment and security components you bring with you, proves that the Israeli government understands what we’re saying and performing day in and day out on the ground: The Jordan Valley is the eastern wall of protection for the State of Israel,” he said.