A placard of a child sits on a table during a conference on human sex trafficking Monday, Oct. 31, 2011 in Atlanta, Ga. Federal authorities are reported to be investigating a Saudi Arabian diplomatic compound in Virginia over a potential case of human trafficking. (AP Photo/David Goldman)

Two women claiming to be sex slaves were arrested at a home in Virginia allegedly owned by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, raising questions surrounding a human trafficking ring extending from the U.S. to its Saudi Arabian ally.

The two Filipino women say they escaped from the home in the wealthy community Tuesday night, reporting that they were being held there against their will. One woman allegedly made her way out after escaping through a closing gate.

Details were not given to the press regarding the women’s escape and testimony, but authorities say an investigation into whether sex trafficking was being carried out throughout the Saudi compound is underway.

As of Thursday, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) indicated no charges had been made regarding the alleged sex trafficking ring. If charges do come, it won’t be the first time Saudis living in the U.S. have been busted for human trafficking and enslavement.

Shocking, but not surprising

In this case, those living at the compound could be protected under diplomatic immunity, escaping the possibility of charges. Diplomats living in the U.S. are not bound to prosecution for violation of any local laws, leaving a loophole that’s difficult to penetrate. If a diplomat is arrested in the United States, he or she must be released.

“Homeland Security Investigations DC did encounter two potential victims of trafficking and the investigation is ongoing,” a spokesperson for Homeland Security told local station News 4.

For those familiar with human rights abuses in Saudi Arabia, news that possible Saudi diplomats were carrying out sexual slavery at their compound in the U.S. isn’t shocking, given the track record of forced servitude in the country.

“It’s not surprising,” Ali Alyami, executive director of the Washington-based Center for Democracy and Human Rights in Saudi Arabia told Mint Press News. “Human trafficking is part of Saudi society … and culture.”

For years, the State Department has highlighted the failure of the Saudi government to address all forms of slavery, sex-related included, without action by its world ally. Its involvement specifically with the sex trade in the Philippines is also nothing new. A 2009 State Department report highlighted the connection, calling for change.

“The Philippines is a source, transit, and a destination country for men, women and children trafficked for commercial sexual exploitation and forced labor,” the report states. “A significant number of Filipino men and women who migrate abroad for work are subjected to conditions of involuntary servitude.”

Yet despite the condemnations by the U.S., action has not followed — close diplomatic ties remain.

“I don’t expect our government to do much about anything when it comes to the Saudi government and Saudi Arabia,” Alyami told Mint Press News. “We have looked the other way while the Saudi regimes and the Saudis in general do things that we do not allow in this country. It is not acceptable under our constitution and rule of law. I don’t really expect our government to do more than talk about this issue.”

Saudi, sex traffic ties

In 2007, the wife of a Saudi prince was found guilty for keeping two Indonesian women enslaved in her Virginia home — a conviction that warranted 100 hours of community service and deportation to her native Saudi Arabia.

Hana Al Jader submitted false documents to the U.S. Embassy in Saudi  Arabia claiming the women would be compensated $1,500 a month and would not work more than eight hours a day — this clearly wasn’t the case.

While Jader was deported, the penalty handed down to her for enforcing slavery did not include prison time. Instead, it included the completion of 100 hours of community service and back payments to the two women who came forward as slaves.

“The Saudis get away with many things that other countries do not get away with,” Alyami said. “And we just go along with it. We lose our credibility globally, because we criticize China, Iran, North Korea… and we should, but we should do the same for the Saudis.”

That same year,in 2007, the U.S. State Department acknowledged the role Saudi Arabia played in the sex trafficking industry, highlighting it as among the 16 countries considered the worst offenders. Including Saudi Arabia on the list put it in danger of U.S. sanctions.

Those enslaved in Saudi Arabia are often done so through false positions, including those relating to housekeeping. Yet as Alyami points out, the line between a woman’s’ obligation as a servant is blurred in the case of sexual slavery — and many women report being involved in sexual slavery scenarios.

The Saudi government condemned the report, claiming the U.S. had not looked into its ongoing efforts to crack down on the problem and existing laws that prevent child labor. Yet just three years later, the U.S. continues to call the country out for creating — and taking part in — the sex trafficking scene.

In its 2010 report, the U.S. State Department identified Saudi Arabia on a ‘Tier 3’ watchlist, meaning its government does not fully comply with the “minimum standards [and] are not making significant efforts to do so” in the global fight against human trafficking. It shares that ranking with Iran.

In 2012, the UNCHR report on trafficking in Saudi Arabia indicated the country was a destination for men and women forced into labor, many of whom are lured to the country with false hopes of finding full-time employment.