UAE to lift travel ban on its citizens

BEIRUT: The United Arab Emirates will soon lift a ban on its citizens travelling to Lebanon, Lebanese state media cited the UAE's ambassador to Lebanon as saying yesterday. "The lifting of the ban on Emiratis travelling to Lebanon will come soon," Lebanon's NNA quoted Hamad Saeed Al-Shamsi as telling journalists after meeting Lebanese Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil. The UAE's close ally Saudi Arabia said in February it was lifting its own advice to citizens not to travel to Lebanon, where Gulf tourism was once a mainstay of the now struggling economy. The UAE and Saudi Arabia have both voiced frequent concern over the political situation in Lebanon, located next to war-torn Syria and home to the heavily armed, Iran-backed Hezbollah group. - Reuters