GCC citizens to travel with ID

Riyadh: Citizens of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Qatar will be allowed to travel between these countries with just ID cards instead of passports by the end of the year, a top Gulf official said.

“I expect that the concerned authorities in these countries would complete all the procedures prior to implementation of the decision before the end of 2008,'' Abdul Rahman Al Attiyah, secretary-general of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), said.

Last year, an agreement had been reached between Saudi Arabia and the UAE that allowed their citizens to travel between the two countries with ID documentation. This was part of implementing an agreement reached by the GCC leaders to allow their citizens to travel freely between member-states.

“The GCC citizens are also entitled to receive the same benefits as nationals of the country when applying for jobs in any GCC state,'' he noted.