Saudi Arabia arrests over 13,600 residency, labour law violators in week-long crackdown

Saudi authorities arrested 13,628 people for violating residency, border security and labour laws during a week of nationwide inspections, the Ministry of Interior said on Saturday, Saudi Gazette reported.The arrests were made between September 17 and September 23 during joint inspections conducted by security forces in cooperation with relevant government agencies.Of those arrested, 6,593 were found to have violated the Residency Law, while 3,531 had breached the Border Security Law and 3,504 had violated the Labour Law.Authorities also arrested 1,197 people while they were attempting to cross the border into Saudi Arabia illegally. Ethiopian nationals accounted for 63% of those arrested, while 36% were Yemeni nationals. The remaining 1% belonged to other nationalities.Another 27 people were arrested while attempting to leave the country illegally.During the same period, authorities deported 12,628 violators. A further 18,549 were referred to their diplomatic missions to obtain travel documents, while 3,815 were referred to complete their travel reservations.The ministry said 31,398 expatriates, including 29,018 men and 2,380 women, are currently undergoing procedures to enforce legal measures for their violations.Security forces also arrested 22 people accused of helping violators by providing transportation, shelter or employment.The Ministry of Interior warned that anyone who facilitates the illegal entry of individuals into the Kingdom, transports them within Saudi Arabia, provides them with shelter or offers other assistance or services could face up to 15 years in prison and a fine of up to SR1 million.Vehicles used to transport violators and houses used to shelter them may also be confiscated, the ministry said.You use AI every day. Now get your AI Quotient. Take the AIQ test.