672 held for illegally entering Oman

Muscat: 672 were arrested for attempting to illegally enter the country during the first quarter of the year, the ROP announced on Sunday. Last year, 858 were arrested during the same period, while 1,039 were arrested in the first quarter of 2015, according to Colonel Saeed Sulaiman Al Assimi, Assistant Director General of Operations at the ROP. Colonel Al Assimi said that there have been stricter security measures that led to this decrease in number of arrests. “Increased control of the Omani border and territorial waters contributed to the decrease in the number of illegal migrants. There has also been increasing community awareness of the dangers in harboring illegal immigrants, which played a large role in controlling the number of violations.” The areas of Muscat and Buraimi saw the biggest number of arrests. 171 were arrested in Muscat, 155 in Buraimi, 49 in North Batinah, 30 in Dhofar, 24 in South Batinah, 20 in Musandam, 12 in Al Wusta, 9 in South Al Sharqiyya, 7 in North Al Sharqiyya, and 2 in Al Dhahira. The ROP also arrested 173 people in various locations. Colonel Saeed Al Assimi suggested that the decrease in the number of illegal immigrants this year is also due to the high collaboration between the ROP and other sectors. “The Royal Oman Police is cooperating with other parties all along the border, both on land and in the waters. The ROP has also been provided with equipment to better monitor the movements of illegal expatriates and smugglers who are attempting to enter the Sultanate,” the Colonel said. The ROP also indicated that raids and inspection campaigns carried out by the ROP alongside the Ministry of Manpower, have contributed to finding large numbers of labour and residence law violators, indicating that there must be awareness of the dangers in harboring infiltrators and violators of the Labour Law On the other hand, Colonel Al Assimi confirmed that the arrested infiltrators are apprehended in equipped centres, which provide food and drink, as well as necessary treatment services until they are prosecuted and deported. “This is in accordance with the international conventions and standards regarding this aspect of the law, in order to ensure the safety dignity, and rights of violators.” In the past three months, the Royal Oman Police have deported 876 infiltrators of different nationalities, while the same period last year resulted in the deportation of 1,116 people. Colonel Al Assimi thanked citizens and residents for their role in combating infiltration and their contribution to the arrest of labour and residence law violators. He urged Oman’s community to immediately report suspicious foreign workers by contacting the Police Operations Centre.