KUWAIT CITY: About 24,000 illegal expatriates have benefited from the two-month amnesty and left the country, announced the head of Inspection and Detection division at the ministry of interior.

Colonel Saleh Abdul Razzak Al Asfour while addressing a press conference said here that majority of amnesty seekers were Asians. Kuwait had announced a two-month amnesty for the illegal residents to leave the country till June 30 without going through any legal obligations.

Al Asfour said the amnesty was coming to an end and it was not yet decided whether the time period should be extended so that all illegal residents can benefit. He said the government has waived all fines that must have accrued for every single day of the illegal stay, which in itself was a big relief for the violators.

Al Asfour also announced that campaign against illegal residents would be stepped up after the amnesty period ends and the violators would be dealt with iron.