Kuwait’s Council of Ministers has decided to allow citizens and residents to travel to and from the country, starting August 1 (Sunday), the government communication centre said in a tweet early Thursday.

The decision excludes residents coming from Bangladesh, Philippines, India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Iran and Nepal.

Earlier this week, Kuwait announced that airlines operating out of Kuwait International Airport (KIA) would resume commercial flights to destinations in 20 countries from August 1.

In a statement, Kuwait's Directorate General of Civil Aviation had said that flights would begin operating from KIA to eight countries in the Middle East — the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Oman, Lebanon, Qatar, Jordan, Iran and Egypt; six in Europe — Bosnia-Herzegovina, the UK, Turkey, Switzerland, Germany and Azerbaijan; five in Asia-Pacific — Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Nepal, the Philippines and India; and to Ethiopia in Africa.

Last month, Kuwait announced it would partially resume commercial flights from August after a nearly five-month hiatus due to the outbreak of coronavirus pandemic, but does not expect to reach full capacity until a year later, as its aviation sector gradually recovers from a suspension sparked by the COVID-19 crisis.