330 Foreign Workers held in Riyadh
The police arrested 330 illegal expatriate workers on Wednesday after several raids in Riyadh districts.
A police spokesman told Arab News on Thursday that officers carried out operations in Batha and Deerah. There were 40 Ethiopian women among those arrested and 30 beggars, mostly from Yemen, the spokesman said.
The people arrested included those without residency permits, working in jobs not stipulated on their permits, absconders, and vendors hawking goods such as fruit and vegetables at public places.
During the operations, the police cordoned off earmarked areas to block the illegal workers from fleeing. Riyadh Gov. Prince Faisal bin Bandar had ordered the raids, which had been carried out with the police and Labor Ministry officials.
Those arrested face various penalties, depending on the offense, which include fines, imprisonment or deportation, the official said.
Law enforcement agencies have been conducting regular raids throughout the country in a bid to clamp down on illegal workers and those involved in various crimes such as theft, sorcery and brewing liquor.
According to the official, most crimes in the Kingdom are committed by expatriates who overstay their visas. The Ministry of Interior had earlier advised all illegal expatriates in the Kingdom to correct their work and residency status following the end of the amnesty period on Nov. 1, 2013 or leave the country.