Gov’t advises against Tishrei trips to Sinai, Turkey

Israelis need to be wary of travel to ¼ of world’s countries

By HERB KEINON
THE SINAI Desert. (photo credit: PIXABAY)
THE SINAI Desert.
(photo credit: PIXABAY)
In advance of the upcoming holidays, the Counter-Terrorism Bureau of Israel’s National Security Council is warning Israelis to stay away from two of their favorite vacation destinations: Sinai and Turkey.
As it does each year before the holidays, the bureau issued travel advisories this week, with four different levels of warnings ranging from the least severe – where it is recommended to refrain from all but necessary travel – to the most severe: refraining from all travel and leaving the area immediately.
The bureau has placed 45 countries on the list. There are 195 states in the world, meaning that Israel has ascertained that 23% of the world’s countries, or specific regions within those countries, are not recommended for Israelis for anything but vital travel.
Sinai, where tens of thousands of Israelis are expected to visit next month, has the most severe travel warning.
Sinai has a “Level 1” warning, as do 12 other countries or regions, including Southern Thailand, Chechnya, the southern Philippines Islands of Mindanao and Sulu, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Iran, Syria, Sudan, northern Nigeria, Libya, Lebanon, the Kashmir region in India, Yemen and Afghanistan.
Turkey has a warning level of 2, meaning Israelis are advised to avoid traveling there, and those that are already in Turkey are advised to stay away from busy tourist sites.
Other countries with this level of warning – high concrete threat potential – include parts of Indonesia, Algeria, Burkina Faso, Djibouti, Côte d’Ivoire, Togo, Mauritania, Mali, parts of Mozambique, Malaysia, Niger, Senegal , Pakistan, western Chad, Tunisia and parts of Kenya, including Nairobi.
Phone inquiries should be directed to (02) 666-7407. The full travel advisory, in Hebrew, can be seen at: www.nsc.gov.il/he/Travel-Warnings/Pages/tishrei.aspx.
Meanwhile Thursday, police asked the public for asisstance in locating Aviv Slobodkin,     26, who entered the Sinai Peninsula earlier this month.
Police said that Slobodkin’s family lost contact with him earlier this week.
Phone inquiries should be directed to (02) 666-7407. The full travel advisory, in Hebrew, can be seen at: www.nsc.gov.il/he/Travel-Warnings/Pages/tishrei.aspx.
 
 


Related Tags
Sinai
vacation