In a significant development, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s (KSA) Ministry of Interior has announced the arrest of 18,489 people for various violations, including residency, labour laws, and border security during mass inspections conducted from November 28 to December 4.
The inspections yielded the following results
Across the Kingdom, 18,489 violations were recorded including 10,824 of residency, 4,638 of border security, and 3,027 of labour laws.
Attempting to cross the border into the Kingdom illegally were 1,125 individuals, of whom 42 per cent were Yemenis, 56 Ethiopians, and two per cent of other nationalities. Additionally, 57 people were arrested for attempting to leave the Kingdom illegally, as reported by Saudi Press Agency (SPA)
Furthermore, 31 people were arrested who were involved in transporting, sheltering, and employing violators. A total of 25,484 expatriates among them 22,604 men and 2,880 women are currently undergoing procedures for enforcing regulations.
Similarly,17,981 were detained for violating laws. They were later instructed to contact their countries’ embassies or consulates to obtain proper travel documentation.
Among them, 2,427 were told to make booking arrangements for their departure, and 9,529 were repatriated.
Ministry issued warning
The Ministry of Interior has warned that any person who facilitates the illegal entry of individuals into the Kingdom and provides any assistance may be penalized with up to 15 years in prison.
A fine of up to one million Saudi Riyal can be also imposed on those whose vehicles used for transport or houses used for shelter may be confiscated.
The ministry stressed that such acts are major crimes that warrant arrest.
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