JEDDAH, 5 October 2006 — Hundreds of landlords have been summoned to appear at various Jeddah police stations following the recent arrests of 1,600 illegal people at homes across Jeddah.

In midnight raids across Jeddah on Tuesday that lasted for four hours 1,600 illegal people were arrested in neighborhoods such as Kandara, Sharafiyah, Aziziyah and Faisaliyah.

Police say 10 of those arrested were members of criminal gangs involved in the sale of liquor and pornography. Officers also seized a huge quantity of sexually explicit movies and illegal fireworks.

Involved in the raids were police officers, traffic police, special forces, officials from the passport department, members of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice and the volunteers from the Saudi Red Crescent.

Suspects were handed over into the custody of relevant authorities for further investigations and fingerprinting. Police officers say that those involved in criminal activities will be made to appear in front of a court of law at the next opportunity.

Among those arrested was a group of foreign workers who were involved in bootlegging. Laboratory tests later revealed that the liquor contained poisonous ingredients. Officers added that some of the homes contained a large quantity of items thought to be used for black magic and substantial amounts of money.

In one of the homes searched, police revealed large quantities of expired food that was meant to be sold in the food market. Prior to conducting the raid, police officers sealed the areas raided in order to prevent people from escaping into neighboring areas.

“Most of the homes were of the same height and close to each other, which made it easier for escaping illegal residents to jump from one rooftop to another. Police were aware of the tactics and managed to arrest most of the overstayers before they escaped,” said a senior police source.

Police officers say that the majority of homes raided were overcrowded with overstayers. A mainly African gang that exploited children to beg was also busted in the raids.

Brig. Gen. Misfer Al-Zuhami, head of Jeddah police, said that the authorities had wished to launch an intensive campaign against illegal residents in the Kingdom, especially since it was Ramadan. “We have secret police in neighborhoods that point out locations of illegal overstayers and report them to the passport department,” said Al-Zuhami.

According to a Saudi social scientist, the areas are safe havens for illegal activities that negatively affect the economy.

“It is a negative phenomenon and there is a large number of people from Africa and Asia that are illegally immigrating to the Kingdom and starting families which may create even more problems.”

The authorities have also called on people including Saudis and legal foreign residents to cooperate with the authorities and to ensure they report on illegal overstayers.