Qatar and UAE tell citizens to steer clear of Lebanon

Qatar advises citizens to avoid Lebanon
20 May, 2012 – The Peninsula

DOHA: Qatar, Bahrain and the UAE have urged their nationals to avoid travel to Lebanon for security reasons as fighting erupted in a town bordering Syria.

The advisory from the three states comes a little ahead of the long summer break when many Gulf tourists flock to Lebanon which is a favourite holiday destination of GCC citizens.

The foreign ministries of the three Gulf countries have also urged their citizens in Lebanon to leave the country as early as possible.

“Those who need to stay on (in Lebanon) should contact Qatar’s embassy in Beirut,” Qatar News Agency (QNA) yesterday quoted the Foreign Ministry as saying.

Lebanon’s Foreign Minister, Adnan Mansour, has meanwhile urged Qatar and the UAE to review their decision and not press their citizens to leave his country or not travel there, according to the website of Lebanon’s Information Ministry.

“The situation in our country isn’t so serious and doesn’t merit such treatment. Lebanon is the second home to the citizens of Qatar and the UAE,” the Lebanese Minister said.

News agencies reported yesterday that heavy fighting had erupted in Lebanon’s northern port of Tripoli as clashes are taking place between government troops and gunmen in a Sunni Muslim district.

“The fighting has highlighted how violence in neighbouring Syria can spill into Lebanon,” news agencies said.

Lebanon’s English language newspaper, The Daily Star, reported that what triggered the clashes in Tripoli was the arrest of an Islamist, Shadi Mawlawi, whom a court refused to release. …more