Gulf states advise nationals to leave Syria

DUBAI: Bahrain and Qatar on Sunday called on their citizens to leave unrest-swept Syria after the United Arab Emirates also advised its citizens to stay away.

The call, issued on the day the Arab League was deciding on sanctions against Damascus over its deadly crackdown on dissent, was issued because of instability in Syria, said Bahrain's foreign ministry.

In Doha, the foreign ministry urged Qataris to leave Syria "as soon as possible," while Abu Dhabi earlier in the week advised Emiratis to delay travel plans to Syria.

Arab states of the Gulf have been at the forefront of calls to sanction Syria over its eight-month crackdown which the United Nations says has killed more than 3,500 people.