Manama: Bahrain’s interior ministry on Tuesday announced the suspension of the issuance of entry visas for Qatari nationals.
The ministry said in a statement it posted on its website that the decision was taken in response to the irresponsible acts of Qatari authorities that do not consider the rights of neighbouring countries or the principles of the international law, the ministry said.
All you need to know about Qatar crisis
The decision is based on the statement of severing political ties with Qatar on June 5, 2017 and the implementation of related-directives of the Cabinet for all concerned ministries and government organisations, it added.
The ministry stressed that the decision “was not taken because of Qatari nationals who share brotherly ties with Bahrainis.”
The ministry added that Qatari students who are taking courses in Bahrain and Qatari nationals holding valid visas are exempted from the ban.
Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt last year cut off their diplomatic, trade and travel relations with Qatar after they accused it of supporting extremists and funding terrorism.
The Quartet issued a list of 13 demands and asked Doha to respond to them as a prelude to end the crisis; however, Qatar rejected the accusations and refused the list, causing the crisis to drag on until today.
International mediation efforts led by Kuwait have failed to make any incremental progress.
