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Saudi Arabia to Turn Lawrence of Arabia's House into Tourist Attraction


Sun 06 Sep 2020 | 08:08 PM
Hassan El-Khawaga

Saudi Arabia's Tourism Ministry intends to turn the house where Lawrence of Arabia stayed into a tourist attraction.

Thomas Edward Lawrence was deployed in the Red Sea port of Yanbu during the Great Arab Revolt of 1916 to help the local Bedouin tribesmen in overthrowing their Ottoman rulers, who allied with Germany against Britain.

Ahmed Al Mahtout, the Mayor of Yanbu, said that the house could be ready for tourists to visit by the end of this year, as part of a wider drive by the Kingdom to attract more foreign visitors, despite the travel restrictions due to the coronavirus pandemic, according to the Telegraph.

[caption id="attachment_147856" align="aligncenter" width="640"]Lawrence of Arabia's House Lawrence of Arabia's House[/caption]

“We just finished the first phase of restoration,” Al Mahtout pointed out. “The residence derives its value from its history and a lot of foreign tourists [would] like to stand in the home of the British intelligence officer."

Meanwhile, Chairman of the TE Lawrence Society Philip Neale said: "It feels like Saudi Arabia is opening up in all sorts of ways and I’m sure that Lawrence fans will be keen to go and visit this house."

"There are still the remains of trains lying in the desert that Lawrence blew up."