Saudi closes borders to 20 countries; UAE, India, UK and US included

Travellers from 20 countries, including the UAE, Egypt, Lebanon, India, Pakistan and the UK and USA, have been barred from entering Saudi Arabia as the kingdom steps up precautions against new variants of coronavirus.

The Ministry of Interior announced that the temporary suspension, which comes to forces at 9pm tonight, February 3, said the ban also extended to those who had passed through any of the 20 listed in the previous 14 days.

“The decision will include those travellers coming from other countries if they passed through any of the 20 banned countries 14 days preceding the request to enter the Kingdom,” the Saudi Press Agency reported on Tuesday citing an official source at the Interior Ministry.

“Saudi citizens, diplomats, health practitioners and their families coming from the mentioned countries or those who transited any of those countries during the 14 days preceding their return to the Kingdom will enter the Kingdom in accordance with the precautionary measures imposed by the Ministry of Health,” the source added.

The full list of countries barred is Argentina, Brazil, Egypt, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Lebanon, Pakistan, Portugal, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and the United States of America.

The source added that the citizens, diplomats, health practitioners and their families coming from the barred countries could re-enter the Kingdom with the existing precautionary measures imposed by the Ministry of Health.

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