Saudi Arabia Travel Ban to UAE Sparks Controversy on Social Media

Saudi Arabia’s decision to suspend passenger flights to and from the UAE aroused widespread controversy on social media, media outlets reported on Sunday.

Former Deputy Chief of Dubai Police Dhahi Khalfan immediately responded to the news on Twitter.

“My tweet is not for Saudi Arabia, but for health officials in UAE. Are we in the same level as Afghanistan and Bangladesh in fighting Coronavirus pandemic?”

[embed]https://twitter.com/Dhahi_Khalfan/status/1411383312967475205?s=1005[/embed]

Moreover, author Jamal Bin Huwaireb posted on Twitter his own comment on Saudi Arabia's travel ban decision.

"Every country has the right to do what it takes to protect its people. However, we cannot believe that this decision is related to the health precautions," he wrote, affirming that the UAE has been exerting great efforts to curb the spread of COVID-19 and its variants.

[embed]https://twitter.com/JamalBnHuwaireb/status/1411535327559356417?s=1005[/embed]

He also claimed that the Kingdom's decision is related to something else other than the pandemic.

"Dubai's airline witnesses an unprecedented travel record from and to UAE," Abdulkhaleq Abdulla, Professor of Political Science, wrote in a tweet.

[embed]https://twitter.com/Abdulkhaleq_UAE/status/1411252323926511616?s=1005[/embed]

Accordingly, Dubai's airline announced that UAE will suspend flights from and to Saudi Arabia. The ban is due to go into effect from Sunday till further notice, according to Al-Bayan newspaper.

The Kingdom is closing its borders to travellers from the UAE, Ethiopia, Vietnam and Afghanistan. This decision was made due to fears from the new Delta variant.

Saudi citizens are banned from travelling to these destinations, unless they receive special permission from authorities.

The country's citizens are currently also banned from travelling to Libya, Syria, Lebanon, Yemen, Iran, Turkey, Armenia, Somalia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Venezuela, Belarus and India.