RIYADH — The Presidency of State Security warned people in an awareness video, published on Tuesday, of the danger of giving money to beggars, or donating to anonymous and unauthorized parties. The State Security said the beggars are "more dangerous than you think", and warned, "Donating to unknown individuals increases the possibility of terrorist financing." In the awareness video of the State Security, a representative clip was shown clarifying the risks that may result from donating to people or entities that are not authorized to receive donations. The video showed a masked person who is surrounded by three homeless children to exploit them in illegal begging and to and win people's sympathy. But in fact it was revealed that he was planning a terrorist act, as it turned out that he was armed with weapons and explosives. The presidency asked people to donate only through authorized entities. It is noteworthy the security authorities have continued their campaign to combat beggary, as they were able to arrest a number of violators in a number of different Saudi cities. Among those who were arrested, a girl whose parents used her to beg, was caught begging indirectly at a station and was claiming that she is Saudi. It was later clarified that they were of Arab nationality, and were also violating the residency system. Additionally, a woman from an Asian country in Makkah collected approximately SR117,000, as well as a number of foreign currencies and gold. An Arab national resident, who is in violation of the residency and work system, was caught carrying an incorrect medical report through which he sought people's sympathy to obtain sums of money. A beggar, of African nationality and in violation of the residency system, was arrested in front of a shop. In addition it was found out that he had come to Saudi Arabia on an Umrah visa and had overstayed since 2016. The security authorities called for reporting the beggars in the Makkah and Riyadh regions via the number (911) and (999) in all regions of the Kingdom. The security authorities also warned people not to sympathize with beggars, noting that the exploitation of children, women and the elderly is a crime of human trafficking.
