Expats face GOSI cuts if they stay abroad for over one month

March 22, 2016

Jeddah, Mar 22: The General Organization for Social Insurance (GOSI) has revealed that it plans to suspend all services to expatriates if they are abroad for over a month, with reinstatement occurring only once they return.

The organization had not yet worked out the manner in which this would occur, but talks were taking place with the Ministry of Interior, said Abdul Aziz Al-Habdan, GOSI’s deputy governor, during a briefing at the Eastern Province Chamber of Commerce and Industry recently.

Al-Habdan was quoted as saying by a local publication that because of the large number of foreign workers in the country, the organization was working to introduce electronic services for companies and their employees. Currently 50 percent of subscribers conduct their transactions in person, he said.

On the wage protection issue, Al-Habdan said that there were some employers registering workers earning less than they do in reality, in an attempt to pay less to the fund. This also affects eventual payouts to workers, he said.

He dismissed reports that children of Saudi women married to foreigners do not benefit from the social insurance system, in reference to the decision taken by the government recently to include them as beneficiaries.

Al-Habdan said that people taking early retirement was having a negative financial impact on GOSI. However, changes were in the pipeline to change this situation, he said.

In response to the organization not disclosing and publishing its financial results, he said: “The rights of subscribers are guaranteed and maintained by the state. Our policy is heading toward further clarification and disclosure.”

He said GOSI now covers 400,000 companies compared to 25,000 over 12 years ago, with 8.5 million workers, compared to 2 million going back over the same period.

According to the GOSI website, the scheme covers workers in the private sector and a group of workers in public sector.

It provides contributors and their families “with a decent life after leaving work due to retirement, disability or death; medical care for contributors afflicted with work injuries or occupational diseases; and compensation in the event of occupational disability or death.”

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Syrian Town erupts after Israeli forces enter Beit Jinn; heavy casualties reported

News Network

November 28,2025

Several Syrians were killed and more than two dozen others injured in Israeli strikes on the outskirts of Damascus, amid intensified incursions by the occupying regime since the fall of former president Bashar al-Assad and the rise of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) rule.

Syrian state TV reported that the casualties occurred during an overnight Israeli assault involving helicopters and drones on the town of Beit Jinn in the Damascus countryside. The attack followed an Israeli military unit’s entry into the town, where they were surrounded by local residents, leading to gunfire and direct confrontations.

According to the report, “The occupation army’s helicopters and artillery shelled Beit Jinn, located at the foothills of Mount Hermon, resulting in 13 martyrs and 25 injured civilians.” The broadcaster did not specify the full extent of damage.

Al-Ikhbariyah Syria confirmed that the shelling coincided with Israeli soldiers entering Beit Jinn, while artillery pounded surrounding areas. The broadcaster stated that the escalation began after local residents clashed with an Israeli patrol that had infiltrated the southern town and “kidnapped” three young men.

Following a two-hour exchange of heavy fire, Israeli forces withdrew and repositioned on the hill of Butt al-Warda at the town’s outskirts.

Israeli media acknowledged that six soldiers were wounded in the clashes—three of them seriously—describing the confrontation as a “sudden ambush” that forced the deployment of reserve units and air support to secure an exit route. No further details were provided.

The aggression has fueled renewed displacement from Beit Jinn, with residents fleeing to nearby villages amid increasingly frequent Israeli attacks.

The raid came just a day after Israeli troops carried out another ground incursion into Umm al-Luqas village in Quneitra province. According to SANA, an Israeli unit in four vehicles entered the village, raided several homes, and later withdrew.

Syria condemned the repeated incursions as violations of the 1974 Disengagement Agreement and UN resolutions, urging the international community to enforce compliance and pressure Israel to halt its operations and withdraw fully.

Israel has expanded its attacks across Syrian territory following the collapse of the Assad government last year. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has reportedly instructed his forces to push deeper into Syrian territory and seize strategic positions.

Meanwhile, critics say the HTS-led interim government’s inaction and growing normalization gestures toward Israel have emboldened Tel Aviv to intensify its military operations. HTS, formerly linked to al-Qaeda, seized control of Damascus last December, formally ending Assad’s rule.

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