Abu Dhabi's biggest port shut briefly in a sandstorm late on Sunday, while the Jebel Ali port near Dubai was able to cancel its shipping suspension order as the sand cloud cleared, shipping sources said on Monday.     

Jebel Ali port authorities warned oil tanker operators that movements would have to be restricted because of the sandstorm that swept across the United Arab Emirates on Sunday afternoon, shipping sources said.

When the dust cloud over Dubai lifted on Sunday evening, the Jebel Ali suspension order was cancelled before coming into effect, although at least one shipping company briefly froze operations on the order.

The Abu Dhabi port of Mina Zayed was closed briefly, a port source said. "Mina Zayed did shut down for approximately two hours due to the low visibility range," he said.

Mina Zayed is Abu Dhabi's main cargo port and Jebel Ali is a major cargo port and oil products blending centre.

A spokeswoman for the operator of the cargo terminal at Jebel Ali said operations were unaffected. - Reuters