The Residency Directorate: Arresting 2865 violating foreign workers during the month

INA - BAGHDAD

The Residency Directorate at the Ministry of Interior confirmed the arrest of 2,865 violating foreign workers and their deportation outside Iraq since the end of the warning period granted on January 15th, while identifying the most prominent violations.

"The Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs has organized the issue of foreign workers in Iraq by setting their percentage at 50% compared to a similar percentage of them for Iraqi workers in each project or workplace, and due to the violations, we believe that this percentage is not applied correctly in all workplaces," said Brigadier General Ahmed Tufan, Director of Residency, Deportation and Exit at the Residency Directorate at the Ministry of Interior in his interview with the Majority Opinion tv Show at Al-Iraqiya News TV -followed by the Iraqi News Agency - INA.

 He added, "We previously set a deadline for foreign workers that ends on December 31st, 2024, then extended it to January 15th, 2025, to resolve and settle their situations. After that, we carried out campaigns against foreign workers who exceeded their residency, which resulted in 2,865 violators being deported outside Iraq."

"Last year, 20,598 violators were deported in only Baghdad, while the number for all of Iraq exceeded 36,000," he included.

Regarding the proven violations, he explained that "the violations varied between illegal entry, violating conditions, or exceeding the period specified for the foreign worker to reside, and the majority of those present are those who resided illegally after entering legally, but they exceeded the permitted period of residency," indicating that "the majority of violators are from Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Syria."