Thosands of residency, labor, border violators arrested across Saudi Arabia

Saudi authorities arrested almost 14,000 people in one week for breaching residency, work, and border security regulations, an official report has revealed.

During the period Nov. 11 to 17, a total of 6,597 arrests were made for violations of residency rules, while 5,775 people were held over illegal border crossing attempts, and a further 1,534 on labor-related issues.

The report’s findings showed that among 356 arrested while trying to cross the border into the Kingdom, 54 percent were Yemeni citizens, 44 percent Ethiopians, and 2 percent other nationalities.

A further 34 people were caught trying to cross into neighboring countries, and 14 were held for involvement in transporting and harboring violators.

The Ministry of Interior pointed out that anyone found to be helping people gain illegal entry to the Kingdom, and transporting, or providing shelter for them could face imprisonment for a maximum of 15 years, a fine of up to SR1 million ($260,000), or confiscation of vehicles and property.

Suspected violations can be reported on the toll-free number 911 in the Makkah and Riyadh regions, and 999 or 996 in other regions of the Kingdom.