Supposed baptismal site mine-free after 53 years

i24NEWS 12/04/2020

The minefield covered around 250 acres and contained an estimated 2,600 landmines — After 53 years of being a vast minefield, the holy site of Qaser al-Yahud, where John the Baptist is thought to have baptized Jesus in the Jordan River, has finally been cleared of landmines. After the 1967 Six Day War, the border between the West Bank and Jordan was heavily mined, including churches belonging to major sects of Christianity at Qaser al-Yahud, located in the Jordan River Valley in the West Bank. The last mine was cleared on April 9, allowing safe access to the churches and compounds that had been off limits to worshippers and the clergy for more than five decades.