MAKKAH, 3 November 2007 — Passport officers in Makkah yesterday arrested 260 Egyptian overstayers and their Arab agent, who provided them with transport and accommodation. The agent charged SR1,400 from each pilgrim after persuading them to overstay their Umrah visas to perform Haj. The man accommodated them in two buildings that belonged to two Saudi women teachers.
The latest arrests bring the total number of foreign pilgrims detained in Makkah for overstaying their Umrah visas in three days to nearly 1,800.
Passport officials arrested the agent after closely monitoring movements in and around the two buildings, a security source told Arab News. One building housed 135 overstaying pilgrims and the other 125.
The department raided the two buildings and arrested all overstayers housed in them, the source said, adding that no one was able to escape.
Col. Ayedh Al-Luqmani, director of the Passport Department in Makkah, said the agent encouraged pilgrims to overstay their visas to make money. He said the two buildings are located far from the Grand Mosque.
He said the agent had previously been deported from the Kingdom over another case.
The passport chief called on Umrah pilgrims not to become victims of agents who promise them help to overstay in the country. He also warned Saudis against providing accommodation to overstayers, saying they would face severe punishment.
