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16/05/2014
Travel Firms Cancel Tours To Mombasa
Hundreds of UK tourists are being evacuated from parts of the Kenyan coast following a Foreign Office warning over a high terrorist threat.
Nearly 400 holidaymakers are to be flown back as a precaution, while tour operators Thomson and First Choice have cancelled all flights to Mombasa until October. The Foreign Office has advised against non-essential travel to areas within 37 miles of the Kenya-Somali border and Nairobi.
The first flights carrying tourists back to the UK landed at Gatwick on Friday morning, but more are expected to touch down tonight and the remainder on Monday.
The main threat is thought to come from the militant Islamist al-Shabab group, which is linked to al-Qaeda.
The Foreign Office warning covers the areas of Mombasa Island area, Kiwayu and coastal areas north of Pate Island, the Garissa district, the Eastleigh area of Nairobi and the slum areas of the Kenyan capital, but it does not include the Diani beach resort or the Moi International Airport.
The United States, France and Australia have issued similar alerts, but the Kenyan government has criticised the advice as "obviously unfriendly".
Interior Ministry spokesman Mwenda Njoka said: "The threats are perpetual, we are at war. But we have not received any specific threat on the hotels."
(CVS/IT)
Nearly 400 holidaymakers are to be flown back as a precaution, while tour operators Thomson and First Choice have cancelled all flights to Mombasa until October. The Foreign Office has advised against non-essential travel to areas within 37 miles of the Kenya-Somali border and Nairobi.
The first flights carrying tourists back to the UK landed at Gatwick on Friday morning, but more are expected to touch down tonight and the remainder on Monday.
The main threat is thought to come from the militant Islamist al-Shabab group, which is linked to al-Qaeda.
The Foreign Office warning covers the areas of Mombasa Island area, Kiwayu and coastal areas north of Pate Island, the Garissa district, the Eastleigh area of Nairobi and the slum areas of the Kenyan capital, but it does not include the Diani beach resort or the Moi International Airport.
The United States, France and Australia have issued similar alerts, but the Kenyan government has criticised the advice as "obviously unfriendly".
Interior Ministry spokesman Mwenda Njoka said: "The threats are perpetual, we are at war. But we have not received any specific threat on the hotels."
(CVS/IT)
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