The Saudi Ministry of Interior announced the results of joint field campaigns conducted by various security sectors across the Kingdom, aimed at monitoring and apprehending violators of residency, labor, and border security regulations. These intensive efforts, carried out between December 25 and 31, 2025, resulted in the arrest of thousands of violators, reflecting ongoing security vigilance and continued efforts to enforce the law.
Details of seizures and statistical figures
Official data revealed that a total of 18,805 violators were apprehended during joint security field campaigns. These figures were distributed as follows: 11,752 residency violators, 4,239 border security violators, and 2,814 labor law violators. These figures underscore the seriousness of the relevant authorities in enforcing regulations and their zero-tolerance policy towards any legal violations that infringe upon the sovereignty of the state and the regulation of the labor market.
General context and importance of security campaigns
These campaigns are an extension of Saudi Arabia's ongoing efforts, spanning several years, within the framework of initiatives such as "A Nation Without Violators," which aim to rectify labor market conditions and ensure security. These campaigns are of paramount importance on both the security and economic fronts. From a security perspective, apprehending border and residency violators contributes to reducing crime rates and enhancing social stability. Economically, eliminating illegal employment promotes legitimate job opportunities, protects fair competition in the market, and supports the goals of the Kingdom's Vision 2030 in creating an attractive and secure investment and regulatory environment.
Border security and deportation procedures
Regarding border security, the Ministry clarified that a total of 1,739 individuals were apprehended while attempting to cross into the Kingdom. Yemenis constituted 37% of this number, Ethiopians 62%, and other nationalities 1%. Additionally, 46 individuals were apprehended while attempting to cross the border illegally out of the Kingdom. Furthermore, 14 individuals were arrested for their involvement in transporting, harboring, employing, and concealing illegal immigrants.
Regarding the current procedures, the Ministry indicated that there are 28,411 undocumented migrants undergoing procedures for implementing the regulations, including 26,855 men and 1,556 women. 20,555 undocumented migrants have been referred to their respective diplomatic missions to obtain travel documents, 3,904 have been referred to complete their travel arrangements, and 12,238 have already been deported.
Official sanctions and warnings
The Ministry of Interior reiterated its strong warnings that anyone who facilitates the entry of violators of the Kingdom's border security regulations, transports them within the Kingdom, provides them with shelter, or offers them any assistance or service whatsoever, will be subject to severe penalties, including imprisonment for up to 15 years, a fine of up to one million riyals, confiscation of the vehicle and accommodation used for sheltering them, and public shaming. The Ministry emphasized that this crime is considered a major offense warranting arrest and is a breach of honor and integrity.
The security authorities called on everyone to cooperate and report any violations by calling the number (911) in the regions of Makkah, Madinah, Riyadh and the Eastern Province, and the numbers (999) and (996) in the rest of the regions of the Kingdom.
