Saudi bans entry from UAE, Vietnam, Ethiopia and Afghanistan

Saudi Arabia has suspend entry from Ethiopia, the UAE, Vietnam and Afghanistan, except for non-citizens who stayed 14 days outside those four countries, as well as all the previously announced countries, a report said.

An official source of the kingdom’s Interior Ministry announced the following decisions in light of the ongoing outbreak of Coronavirus pandemic (Covid-19) and the spread of a new mutated strain of the virus, reported Bahrain News Agency (BNA), citing a Saudi Press Agency (SPA) report:

•    Banning citizens from travelling directly or indirectly, without obtaining prior permission from the concerned authorities to Ethiopia, the UAE and Vietnam. Suspending citizens' direct or indirect travel to the previously declared countries will continue.

•    Suspending flights with countries where travel is prohibited, with subjecting all those, citizens and others coming from them to institutional quarantine.

•    As for citizens, currently visiting any of those countries, who will return before 11 pm on July 4, 2021, are excluded without any effect regarding the evacuation of violators of residency laws from the Kingdom and related flights.

•    The suspension of flights will take effect from 11 pm on July 4, 2021.

The Ministry of Interior called upon citizens wishing to travel to the countries   which are not banned to be careful, stay away from areas where the virus is spreading, and follow up all precautionary measures, regardless of their destination, said the SPA report.