US State Department Issues Travel Alert For Europe But Not Egypt

Christmas is one of the busiest times of the year in which Americans travel. In an effort to highlight the safest places to travel this holiday season, the American State Department announced that there’s a travel risk in most of Europe, but not Egypt!

Coming as good news for Egypt’s tourism recovery is a statement released by US State Department issuing travel warnings across the globe. Illustrating a convenient map was UK’s Independent.com, who displays the world in three colours – red signifies a warning, yellow signifies alert, and green signifies no warning. Surprisingly, Egypt was coloured green, while all of Europe appeared yellow except for Ukraine, which remains a red warning.  

Winter used to be Egypt’s busiest tourism season but has struggled in the wake of uprisings and the downing of a Russian plane last year. Despite Egypt’s instability, the State Department believes that the situation no longer merits a warning for their citizens.

According to the statement released by US State department, “Credible information indicates the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL the U.S. gov't acronym for ISIS or Da'esh), al-Qaeda, and their affiliates continue to plan terrorist attacks in Europe, with a focus on the upcoming holiday season and associated events. While extremists have carried out attacks in Belgium, France, Germany, and Turkey in the past year, the Department remains concerned about the potential for attacks throughout Europe.  If you are traveling between countries in Europe, please check the website of the U.S. Embassy or consulate in your destination city for any recent security messages.”