The Saudi authorities announced today, Friday, the dismissal of the commander of the border guards and five prominent officials from their posts, and their referral for investigation due to what they said were "suspicions of corruption", in one of the largest tourism projects of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
According to the official Saudi Press Agency, a royal order was issued to transfer an official to retirement and exempt a number of officials, following irregular encroachments on the lands of the "Red Sea Project" and to investigate all officials.
The royal order included terminating the service of the Director General of the Border Guard, Lieutenant General Awad bin Eid al-Balawi, by referring him to retirement, and exempting the governors of Umluj and Al-Wajh in the Tabuk region in the north of the Kingdom, and the head of the Soudah Center (southwest), and the exemption of the commanders of the border guard sector in Umluj and Al-Wajh.
The mayor of Tabuk region and the heads of the municipalities of Amlaj, Al-Wajh and Al-Souda, and the responsible for infringements in the secretariats of the Medina region in the west of the Kingdom and the Tabuk region were also exempted.
The royal decree indicated that the exemptions were made based on what was received from the Royal Commission for Al-Ula Governorate, the Red Sea Company, and the Souda Development Company, regarding the irregular encroachments on the lands of the Red Sea Project, which exceeded 5,000 cases of encroachment and exceeded dozens in the Al-Ula Governorate, in the west of the Kingdom.
The Control and Anti-Corruption Authority - which is an official body - investigates all the officials referred to, takes legal measures against them, and submits what is reached, according to the same royal order.
The Red Sea project is one of the largest Saudi projects announced by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in July 2017, with an area of about 34 thousand square kilometers, and includes more than 90 natural islands between the areas of Umluj and Al-Wajh.
In 2017, the Control and Anti-Corruption Commission took over the detention of dozens of Saudi princes, businessmen and wealthy people, in what was known at the time as the "Ritz-Carlton arrests", which ended with their release in exchange for providing part of their wealth.