JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia will end restrictions on travel to and from the UAE, South Africa and Argentina on Wednesday morning. The travel ban was originally imposed to curb the spread of COVID-19, amid a surge in cases of the delta variant of the coronavirus.

It has been lifted in light of changes in the epidemiological situation both locally and globally, and based on submissions by the relevant health authorities, the Saudi Interior Ministry said on Tuesday.

A ministry spokesman said the situation was being constantly evaluated, and stressed the importance of adhering to all precautionary and preventive measures to halt the spread of COVID-19.

The Kingdom reported 138 new cases of the disease on Tuesday, raising the total to 545,505, and six more people died from COVID-19, bringing the total to 8,591 since the pandemic reached the Kingdom at the beginning of 2020.

Testing hubs and treatment centers set up throughout the country have dealt with hundreds of thousands of people.

In addition, the Kingdom’s vaccination campaign continues to gather pace. A total of 38,455,901 people in the country have so far been inoculated against COVID-19, including 1,609,631 who are classified as elderly. More than 63 percent of the population have received a first dose, and just over 45 percent have received both doses. At the current rate of vaccination, 70 percent of the population is expected to have completed both doses by the beginning of November.