KUWAIT: Police officers round up people during a massive raid in Jleeb Al- Shuyoukh yesterday. — KUNA

KUWAIT: A major security campaign was launched on the instructions of Deputy Premier and Interior Minister Sheikh Mohammad Al-Khalid Al-Sabah and in the presence of Interior Ministry Undersecretary Lt Gen Suleiman Al-Fahd to arrest suspects and wanted persons as well as law violators in Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh.

The area was divided into five security zones. Field assistant undersecretaries participated in the campaign along with the traffic department, emergency police, helicopters, criminal detectives, state security, Kuwait Municipality, medical emergencies and the fire department, in addition to concerned ministries.

The interior ministry's PR and security information department said security authorities sealed off the area at 3:00 am with 1,700 policemen and 150 police patrol cars to raid places that sold liquor and drugs, international call centers and brothels, and arrest suspected criminals and thieves.

The campaign resulted in the arrest of 1,248 persons without IDs, 305 iqama violators, 135 debtors, 63 wanted people, 123 prostitutes, 299 absconders, 16 drug dealers, 480 with expired residencies, 23 with criminal and misdemeanor cases, 472 for deportation and 163 labor law violators. Five liquor factories were busted and 38 stores without licenses were shut down.

By Hanan Al-Saadoun