Saudi Arabia Arrests Over 21,500 Last Week in Residency and Labour Operations
Saudi Arabia arrested more than 21,500 people in the past week as it looked to stop residency, labour and security breaches.
The announcement was made by the Ministry of Interior in a social media post identifying 21,505 arrests between March 28 and April 3.
The Ministry said the arrests were made by multiple security agencies in the Kingdom during the past week.
Saudi residency, labour and security arrests
The arrests included:
- 14,323 violations of residency laws
- 4,778 violations of border security laws
- 2,404 violations of labour laws
Of the 1,295 people caught trying to cross the border into the Kingdom illegally, 37 percent were Yemenis, 61 percent were Ethiopians, and 2 percent were of other nationalities.
61 people were arrested for trying to leave the country illegally.
Nine people involved in transporting, sheltering, employing and covering up violators of the above laws were arrested.
Of the 61,301 expatriates currently subject to the procedures for implementing the regulations, 57,013 are men and 4,288 are women.
Other measures include having 54,169 violators referred to their diplomatic missions to obtain travel documents, 1,666 referred to complete their travel reservations, and 7,423 deported.
خلال أسبوع.. ضبط 21505 مخالفين لأنظمة الإقامة والعمل وأمن الحدود.
— وزارة الداخلية (@MOISaudiArabia) April 6, 2024
#وطن_بلا_مخالف pic.twitter.com/doeNV8lx6V
The Ministry of Interior warned that any person who facilitates the illegal entry of individuals into the Kingdom, transports them on its territory, provides them with shelter or provides any assistance or service may be penalised with up to 15 years in prison and a fine of up to SR1 million ($267,000).
The ministry stressed that such acts are major crimes that are punishable with arrest.
