Saudi Arabia deports over 8000 illegal residents in nationwide crackdown in past one month

Saudi Arabia has deported 8,733 illegal residents in the past week as part of a large-scale crackdown on residency, labor, and border violations, the Ministry of Interior announced.

Saudi Arabia has deported 8,733 illegal residents over the past week as part of a nationwide campaign targeting residency, labor, and border violations, the Ministry of Interior announced on Saturday. Between January 30 and February 5, security forces, in coordination with multiple government agencies, conducted joint field operations across the Kingdom.

These efforts led to the arrest of 21,477 individuals, including 13,638 for violating residency laws, 4,663 for breaching border security regulations, and 3,176 for labor law infractions, according to the ministry.

The operation also led to the arrest of 1,316 individuals attempting to enter Saudi Arabia illegally. Among them, 40% were identified as Yemeni nationals, 58% as Ethiopian nationals, and the remaining 2% belonged to other nationalities. Additionally, 77 people were apprehended while trying to exit the country unlawfully.

Authorities have also referred 28,661 violators to their respective diplomatic missions to obtain travel documents, while 2,919 individuals are in the process of finalizing their travel arrangements.

The crackdown was not limited to undocumented individuals, as 13 people were arrested for aiding illegal entry, providing shelter, or employing violators.
According to the Ministry of Interior, a total of 37,120 individuals—33,547 men and 3,573 women—are currently undergoing legal procedures before further punitive actions are taken.