The United Arab Emirates bans visas to citizens of 13 Muslim countries with immediate effect.
UAE halts issuing new visas to citizens of 13 Muslim countries with immediate effect. Sends circular to all companies in the region.
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has halted issuing new visas from today to 13 Muslim countries such as Pakistan, Afghanistan, Syria, Lebanon, Iran, Somalia, Libya, Yemen, Algeria, Kenya,Tunisia and Turkey, over security reasons but did not provide details about the concerns.
The visa halt circular was sent to all companies by the UAE government and the document read ‘with immediate effect’ applications for new employment and visit visas has been suspended for 13 countries until further notice.
The circular did not specifically mention if there were any exceptions to the ban but is currently in place for a temporary basis.
Reports are doing the rounds that the visa ban circular came into effect after the French Embassy in the UAE urged its citizens to be vigilant after a bomb attack in Saudi Arabia on diplomats was claimed by the Islamic State a week ago.
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The bomb explosion, occurred during a World War One commemoration ceremony in the capital city of Saudi Arabia, Jeddah and was the first attack in several years where explosives were used in an attempt to hit foreign nationals in the conservative kingdom.
Reuters contacted UAE’s Federal Authority for Identity and Citizenship for more details on the circular and the authorities declined to comment.
The visa ban for 13 Muslim countries comes at a time when the Gulf state established good relations with Israel two months ago, a move that amended decades of strained foreign policies between the two nations.
While the UAE-Israel peace deal angered some Muslim countries and communities, the others wholeheartedly welcomed it calling it a ”new beginning”.
However, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters that the visa ban has nothing to do with UAE’s relationship with Israel and the ban is expected to last for a brief period of time.
A week ago Pakistan’s foreign ministry said the UAE had stopped processing new visas for its citizens but stated that those already holding valid visas could still enter the Gulf nation.
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UAE stopped issuing new visas to citizens of 13 mostly Muslim-majority countries — as it works out a deal for visa-free travel with Israel https://t.co/ZOvcB5NlVT
— Mohamad Bazzi (@BazziNYU) November 25, 2020
