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By Sami Zaptia.
London, 16 September 2021:
The Libyan government announced today the reopening of its borders with Tunisia for the entry of citizens from both sides. It did not specify when, but Prime Minister Abd Alhamid Aldabaiba tweeted that this will start as of tomorrow.
It reported that this came as a culmination of the efforts launched by Prime Minister Abd Alhamid Aldabaiba with Tunisian President Kais Saied during their meeting in Tunisia a few days ago.
The meeting resulted in their agreement to form a ministerial committee from both sides, which worked on evaluating the security and health conditions, and reached the decision to open the border crossings, with the two sides pledging to meet all security and health requirements to confront the Corona pandemic for the safety of the two peoples and to facilitate the movement of individuals and goods between the two countries.
The Libyan government affirmed that Libya’s relations with the Tunisia are well established and solid. And that the two countries have the will and commitment to enhance all the understandings concluded between them to serve the interests of the Libyan and Tunisian peoples.
No reciprocation from Tunisia yet
At the time of writing the Tunisian government had not made a reciprocal announcement. It must therefore be kept in mind that Libya had made a similar unilateral announcement last month to which Tunisia did not reciprocate.
The health protocol
In its official statement, the Libyan government did not detail what the new unified health protocol between Libya and Tunisia entails. But numerous other media sources have confirmed that:
– Travellers from either country who had received two doses of the anti-coronavirus vaccine and who have negative PCR test (72 hours old maximum) do not have to quarantine upon their arrival in Libya or Tunisia.
– Travellers who have either had only one vaccination or are totally unvaccinated are required to have a PCR upon arrival test and a mandatory 10-day quarantine in hotels predesignated for quarantine in the two countries.
– Patients arriving at either country are required to have a negative PCR and have an invitation from the health institute in which they will be staying.
In reality, this is the same protocol agreed previously when borders were first reopened after the coronavirus shutdown.
Tunisia denies refusing entry to Libyans as its borders remain closed | (libyaherald.com)
Libya to reopen land borders and resume flights with Tunisia as of tomorrow | (libyaherald.com)
