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Saudi Arabia to lift 35-year ban on cinemas

The Saudi Arabian government is lifting a ban on commercial cinemas that has lasted more than 35 years, according to an official statement.

The Saudi Ministry of Culture and Information will immediately begin issuing licenses to cinemas, with the first movie theaters expected to open March 2018.

The measure is in line with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's social and economic reform program Vision 2030, which aims to create a "rejuvenated" entertainment industry. Under the program, Saudi Arabia expects to open 300 cinemas with more than 2,000 screens across the country by 2030.

The country's General Commission for Audiovisual Media will reveal more details on the cinema licensing process over the coming weeks.

Saudi Arabia had movie theaters in the 1970s but Muslim clerics persuaded authorities to close them, BBC News reported.