BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

15/11/2007

Belarus to let Israelis in without visas

By JPOST.COM STAFF

Belarus on Thursday announced that Israelis can travel to the country for a month without an entry visa.

"The Belorussian side has made a unilateral decision to cut down the list of documents necessary for the issue of Belorussian entry visas," the Belorussian Embassy said in a statement. "From now on, citizens of the State of Israel who wish to travel to Belarus and stay there up to 30 days do not need to present letters of invitation and other explanatory documents."

The embassy called it a "goodwill gesture" to immigrants from Belarus and other Israelis wishing to visit the country.

Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko sparked a diplomatic row with Israel last month when he addressed the shoddy conditions of the town of Bobruisk during a live press conference and said: "Well, obviously, it is a Jewish town. The Jews do not care for the place they live in, look at Israel, I have been there." The town was reorganized after the Jews left, he added, and called for Jews "with money" to return there.

Source:

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1195127516683&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull