RIYADH, 31 March 2003 — No Saudis or expatriates have been detained while trying to cross into Iraq or Kuwait, a senior Saudi official said here today.
Talal Mohsen Al-Angawi, director-general of the Border Guards, said a number of cameras had been installed to monitor the movement of people across the border and help stop those trying to enter the Kingdom illegally.
“The Border Guards have been reinforced with added equipment and personnel following the instructions of the Ministry of Interior,” said Al-Angawi, adding that the guards are committed to providing protection especially to the people in the border areas.
The statement from the Border Guards came in response to media reports that some Saudis and expatriates had crossed over into Iraqi territory to fight alongside Iraqi troops against the Anglo-American forces.
In the event of a wave of Iraqi refugees, the Border Guards chief said that refugees will not be allowed to enter the Kingdom and will have to settle on Iraqi territory, in accordance with the Saudi government’s decision.
“No displacement of people or refugees coming toward the Saudi-Iraqi border have been reported since the war broke out,” he said.
Al-Angawi said no smuggling incidents or illegal crossings were reported from the border since the war began.
The Border Guards arrested some 107,000 illegal entrants in the four months ending in mid-July last year, according to an earlier report.
The Border Guards also arrested 939 smugglers and confiscated 382 kgs of hashish, 48,259 pills, 935,000 kgs of qat, and just over 4,000 bottles of liquor during the same period.
