Saudi Gazette report

RIYADH — More than 10,000 people were deported in the past one week in the ongoing crackdown on residency and labor law violators in the Kingdom.

This takes the total number of violators deported to their respective countries as part of the Nation Free of Illegal Expats campaign to 377,572, campaign officials said in a weekly bulletin carried by the Saudi Press Agency. This was up by 10,220 from the number of deportees a week ago when their number stood at 367,352.

The total number of violators arrested since the Kingdom-wide campaign began on Nov. 15, 2017, has reached 1,483,009.

As many as 19 ministries and government departments including the Ministry of Labor and Social Development and the directorate general of passports are participating in the campaign.

According to data released by the campaign, 28,527 people were arrested while trying to sneak into the Kingdom across its southern borders. Yemenis and Ethiopians constituted the majority of the infiltrators.

Officials said a total of 2,319 people were charged with sheltering and transporting illegal residents. They included 485 Saudis, of whom 474 were questioned and penalized while 16 others are still under investigation.

The officials said 11,844 violators, consisting of 9,933 men and 1,911 women, are being held at various detention centers awaiting deportation.

A total of 206,674 violators were referred to concerned embassies and consulates to issue them with travel documents while 255,932 others were finalizing their flight bookings for final departure from the country.