20 countries facing Saudi travel ban will not be allowed to operate flights

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia has decided to resume international flights from May 17 except for the 20 countries facing travel ban.

Saudi Arabia had imposed a travel ban on international flights on February 3.

The ban was imposed on people arriving from Argentina, the United Arab Emirates, Germany, the United States of America, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Pakistan, Brazil, Portugal, the United Kingdom, Turkey, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, France, Lebanon, Egypt, India, and Japan.

The recent update was shared by the Saudi sources in a statement on Twitter account. 

“Welcome, our dear guest, the suspension of all international flights will be lifted starting from 1 am on Monday, May 17. But this won’t be applicable to countries where the relevant official committee decided to suspend travel to or form due to the outbreak of coronavirus."

The conditions for the resumption of flights may vary with different countries, Saudi Airlines said, adding that the sanctions will remain in place for countries where the situation is worse due to coronavirus.

A similar ban was placed in December after a new strain of COVID-19 was identified in the United Kingdom.