Tougher screening of cargo is on the rise across the Middle East, pitting enforcement officers against the challenge of securing merchant transport with the minimum of time and disruption.

Terrorist incidents in the region, Europe and North America led to scramble in the Persian Gulf aviation industry to update security of cargo carried overland and by air.

Many of the under-resourced Arab countries that aren't oil rich are still struggling to catch up with modern security technologies applied by the wealthy Gulf governments.

Regional overland routes are some of the busiest in the world with a vast range of diverse merchandise moving between Europe, Africa and the eastern Mediterranean region.

OSI Systems, Inc., a major provider of specialized electronics and services, announced that its security division, Rapiscan Systems, would be supplying the Eagle T-10 cargo and vehicle inspection units to an unidentified customer in the Middle East. The multimillion-dollar contract meets the need for a cargo screening system that entails minimum possible disruption in the flow of goods.

The Eagle T-10 is a towable, ruggedized and highly mobile cargo and vehicle inspection system that is designed for rapid deployment. It features Rapiscan's proprietary 1 MeV X-ray scanner which can detect potential threats in even densely packed cargo.

OSI Systems Chief Executive Officer Deepak Chopra said the Eagle T-10 can be rapidly deployed to a new checkpoint location and inspect the vehicle and its cargo for contraband, such as explosives, weapons and narcotics. The T-10 is an example of how the security products play a key role in helping protect critical infrastructure, industrial complexes, and commerce centers in a region that is critical to the global economy, Chopra said.

The conflict in Syria has disrupted cross-border heavy vehicle traffic between Europe, Turkey and the lower Arabian states of the Persian Gulf and the Arabian Peninsula, including Saudi Arabia.

Container transshipment between eastern Mediterranean ports and the inland routes through Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt and Turkey have also been affected. The level of investment required in equipping border forces with modern screening equipment has not been forthcoming.

Travel industry professionals who met at several Gulf conferences and trade shows in the United Arab Emirates cited projections that both air cargo and road cargo volumes would increase dramatically through 2011, despite the unexpected setbacks in Syria and Libya.

One of the biggest drivers for growth in the demand for overland cargo traffic has been the slow return to normality in Iraq. Security concerns for the international road haulage business have also generated demand for new cargo screening equipment and expertise.

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