UAE grants Andy Ram visa for tournament

It would appear that the international uproar following the United Arab Emirates decision to bar tennis player Shahar Peer from participating in the Dubai Open has been at least partially successful. US Congressman Anthony Weiner said Thursday that fellow Israeli Andy Ram has been granted an entry visa

to the UAE, and he will be able to take part in next week's men's tournament.

"UAE Ambassador to the US Yousef Al Otaiba informed me that as a result of our discussions Dubai would issue a visa for Andy Ram to participate in the Dubai Tennis Championship," Weiner said in a written statement. The news apparently came not long before the congressman intended to publically call on the ATP to cancel the tournament.

A foreign ministry official in Abu Dhabi said a visa was being issued. The director of consular affairs at the ministry, Sultan al-Kortassi, told the official Wam news agency that the decision was in accordance "with the obligations of Emirates to organize international sporting, cultural and economic events without restriction to the participation of individuals from UN member states.

"That is the policy we follow and which does not imply from a political point of view any form of normalization (of links) with countries which do not have diplomatic relations with the United Arab Emirates."

Former tennis champion and equal rights campaigner Billie Jean King joined the growing number of tennis

players backing Peer, and described the refusal to grant her an entry visa as shameful. "The United Arab Emirates' refusal to grant a visa to Shahar Peer and preventing her from competing at this week's Sony Ericsson WTA Tour in Dubai is shameful and definitely a step backwards," King said in a statement.

"In the 21st century there is no reason a person should be restricted from doing his or her job because of their nationality, creed, race, gender or sexual orientation."

The Associated Press contributed to this report