Saudi Arabia tells its citizens 'leave Lebanon immediately' because of Iran hostilities

Saudi Arabia has issued a travel ban on Lebanon, urging people not to travel to the country and telling those who are already there to leave.

Any Saudis remaining in Lebanon have also been urged to contact the Kingdom's embassy in Beirut, which will be able to 'provide care for their safety'. Quoting a source from Saudi Arabia's ministry of foreign affairs, Saudi Press Agency reported that the ministry demanded all those who were in Lebanon leave immediately.

The announcement comes following an escalation in hostilities between the Kingdom and Iran, which has seen Lebanon cut off of aid from Saudi Arabia after refusing to condemn the attacks by protesters on the Saudi Embassy in the Islamic Republic.

Following the attacks, which came in response to Saudi Arabia's execution of popular Shiite cleric Nisr al-Nisr on 2 January 2106 along with 46 others accused of terror offences, Saudi severed diplomatic ties with Iran, and vice versa.

Iran has also warned prior to al-Nisr's death that his execution would 'cost Saudi Arabia dearly' and tensions between the two have been heightened ever since, also potentially increasing sectarian strife across the region.