(AFP) The immigration department is aiming to arrest at least 52,000 illegal immigrants by the end of the year in a nationwide blitz, a senior official said today.

The department has directed each of the country's 13 states to round up 4,000 illegal immigrants, Ishak Mohamad, immigration director of Perak told AFP .

"But this amount is only a guideline. If the state has the resources to arrest more illegals, they should do so. Our enforcement units should conduct more regular checks," he said.

"We will continue to conduct raids to ensure the illegals do not pose a security threat to the people."

Ishak said 10,800 illegals had already been captured in Perak between January and August. Some 9,617 of them were deported, of whom 8,278 were Indonesians.

The new directive was aimed at foreigners staying and working in the country without legal documents, he said.

All-out effort

According to Ishak, many of the illegals were from Indonesia while others were from Thailand, Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, China, Nepal and Pakistan.

"Since the directive, the department has fully mobilised the enforcement unit and our officers have intensified their search for foreigners without the necessary documents," he said.

"We are also liasing with enforcement agencies, such as the police and local authorities to track down the illegal immigrants."

As part of the blitz, Ishak said 40 Indonesian illegals were detained in an operation in Ipoh early Tuesday.