The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is worried over large number of Pakistanis living there involved in various crimes including terrorism. They have deported about 39,000 Pakistanis in the last four months for violating rules and criminal behaviour.
Various Pakistanis, including a woman, have been arrested recently for helping the terrorist organisation ISIS. Last year, one Pakistani, who has been living in Saudi Arabia for 12 years with his family, had blown himself up near the US consulate in Jeddah. In another incident, two Pakistanis were arrested while trying to blow up the Al-Jawhara stadium in Jeddah, where a football match between Saudi Arabia and UAE was going on with 60,000 spectators present in the stadium.
Apart from terrorism, hordes of Pakistanis are involved in theft, drug trafficking, forgery, theft, etc. As a result, the Islamic Kingdom is now worried about the kind of Pakistanis entering their country.
According to a report published in the Saudi Gazette, the security committee of the Shura Council – the advisory body that proposes laws to the King and the cabinet – has called for ‘thoroughly scrutinizing the Pakistanis before they are recruited for work in the Kingdom’.
Abdullah Al-Sadoun, chairman of the committee, is quoted as saying that Saudi authorities should coordinate with Pakistani counterparts in getting more information over the Pakistani nationals trying to enter the Kingdom.
This is similar to the arrangement US has worked with Pakistan under President Trump, where Pakistani authorities are required to share all intelligence and required data related to their citizens trying to enter US.
White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer had recently said that if Pakistani authorities were found lacking in sharing required data or intelligence, Pakistan could also be added to the list of countries that face travel ban under Trump administration.
With Saudi Arabia planning a similar vetting of Pakistanis before allowing them inside the Kingdom, Pakistan has gained the distinction of being the country whose citizens have become security threats even to countries that are directly and indirectly held responsible for creating the monster of Islamic terrorism.