Khaberni - The Saudi Ministry of Interior announced the apprehension of 17,880 offenders against residency, work, and border security regulations within one week.
In detail, the joint field campaigns to follow up and apprehend violators of residency, work, and border security regulations, which took place across all regions of the kingdom from 20 to 26 / 6 / 1447H corresponding to 11 to 17 / 12 / 2025, resulted in the following outcomes:
First: The total number of violators apprehended by the joint security field campaigns across all regions of the kingdom amounted to 17,880, of which 11,190 were for violating residency regulations, 3,801 for violating border security regulations, and 2,889 for violating work regulations.
Second: The total number of individuals caught attempting to cross the borders into the kingdom was 1,509, with Yemenis making up 44%, Ethiopians 55%, and other nationalities 1%. Additionally, 40 individuals were apprehended for attempting to cross the borders out of the kingdom in an irregular manner.
Third: 15 individuals were caught involved in transporting, sheltering, employing violators of residency, work, and border security regulations, and covering up for them.
Fourth: The total number of violators currently subjected to regulatory enforcement procedures is 29,771, of whom 28,198 are men, and 1,573 are women.
Fifth: A total of 20,282 violators were referred to their diplomatic missions to obtain travel documents, 5,080 violators to complete their travel bookings, and 12,661 violators were deported.
The Ministry of Interior emphasized that anyone facilitating the entry of border security regulation violators into the kingdom, transporting them within it, providing them shelter, or offering any kind of aid or service in any way, exposes themselves to penalties up to 15 years imprisonment, a fine up to one million Riyal, confiscation of the transport and dwelling used for sheltering, in addition to defamation. It clarified that such crimes are considered major crimes that warrant detention and breach honor and trust, urging reporting any violation cases on (911) in Mecca, Medina, Riyadh, and Eastern regions, and (999) and (996) in the rest of the kingdom.
