FCO spooking travellers, say operators
UK: Travel companies say warnings should be less indiscriminate
Travel agents and tour operators are accusing the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) of frightening British travellers, according to a report in Saturday’s Daily Telegraph.
As reported by News From Abroad, the FCO last week issued a series of warnings, telling travellers of the dangers of “indiscriminate attacks” around the world, and even greater dangers in many countries in the Middle East. The government department told of the dangers of chemical and biological attacks in no less than nine countries in the region – not including Iraq.
But travel organisations told the Telegraph’s Rosemary Behan that the warnings were indiscriminate. Philip Hamilton-Grierson, of Cox and Kings, told the newspaper: “We are talking about a vast area. One could imagine biological or chemical weapons being used against a coalition military target, but it is incredibly likely that any terrorist group is going to use weapons of mass destruction against tourists in Dubai.”
And Platon Loizou, from Turkey specialist Jewel in the Crown, said advice given for south-eastern Turkey is keeping travellers away from the whole country, adding: “The Foreign Office is spooking people. It is destabilising the travelling public.”
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