Saudi Arabia’s authorities have arrested 19,710 persons residing or trying to enter the Kingdom illegally in different inspection raids in all regions of the country during the first week of May, a state-run news agency reported citing the Ministry of Interior. According to data released by the Ministry of Interior, 12,961 persons were arrested for violating the Residency Law and 4,177 for violating the Border Security Law. During the first week of May, a total 2,572 violators of the Labor Law have also been arrested. Between May 2 and May 8, security forces and relevant government agencies conducted combined field security activities that resulted in the arrest of the illegal occupants.
The data showed that 979 persons in all were detained while attempting to enter Saudi Arabia from outside the country. Out of them, 41 percent are citizens of Yemen, 54 percent belonging to Ethiopia while the remaining three percent are from different countries. The Ministry of Interior maintained that 12 persons were detained for their roles in providing sanctuary to undocumented immigrants as well as in the transportation, harboring, and hiring of those who violated laws pertaining to employment, residency, and border security.
