Saudi Arabia to Lift Travel Ban to Lebanon End of May
Saudi Arabia is likely to lift a ban that urged Saudi nationals to refrain from traveling to Lebanon due to the critical security situation in the country, LBCI reported on Tuesday.
"Saudi Arabia is inclined to lift the travel ban to Lebanon at the end of May,” LBCI said.
This comes after Saudi Ambassador to Lebanon Ali Awad Assiri returned to the country with his family on May 2 to resume his diplomatic duties.
Assiri had left Lebanon in September 2014 because “of the deteriorating security conditions,” as he stated at the time.
Back then, Prime Minister Tammam Salam's cabinet was not formed yet, and the implementation of the adopted security plan had not kicked off.
The Saudi diplomat stated upon his arrival in Beirut that there is no ban on visits by Saudi nationals to Lebanon.
"King Abdullah is keen on (the safety of) Saudi citizens, and the travel warning was only issued when (certain security) conditions prevailed in the country,” he explained.
The Kingdom had repeatedly called on its citizens to refrain from traveling to Lebanon since the eruption of the Syrian war, as a response to the recurrence of deadly bombings and kidnapping incidents in the country.
The latest warning was issued in September 2013 when it cited “the region's current conditions” as a reason for the travel ban.
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