Sri Lanka today barred foreigners from visiting its former war zone in the Tamil-majority northern province without prior approval, citing national security concerns amid reports of attempts to revive the LTTE.

Foreign passport holders will now have to inform the Ministry of Defence and Urban Development about the nature of their visit and the area they intend to visit for obtaining permission for visiting the northern province, military spokesman Brigadier Ruwan Wanigasooriya said at a media briefing.

"The decision has been taken to restrict foreigners' visits to North following information received by government intelligence services that certain foreign nationals are engaged in spreading various opinions among different communities to incite public disturbance and conflicts among the civilians, thereby threatening the national security," Wanigasooriya said.

The new move came after foreign nationals were turned away at Omanthai, the army controlled entry point to the North on the A9 highway, last week ahead of President Mahinda Rajapaksa's visit to the province.