Oman arrests 80 infiltrators, deports 40

Omani authorities arrested 80 people of various nationalities who illegally entered the Gulf country. A police statement issued on Thursday said the infiltrators were apprehended in the provinces of Muscat and Masandam and other regions of the sultanate. The infiltrators from diverse Asian countries will be referred to judicial authorities, the statement said. Fourty of them were deported after necessary legal measures were taken in coordination with embassies of their countries. Oman detained, last year, 3,400 persons who sneaked into the country through illegal means. Some intended to find work in the sultanate and others planned to proceed to other GCC countries for identical purposes. The Sultanate of Oman is a member state of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), founded in the early 80s with aim of establishing closer coordination among the regional countries, namely in the security domain. It also includes Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar and Bahrain.