Countries warn citizens to avoid Egypt
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Paris: Travel agencies postponed departures for Egypt on Saturday as capitals issued new warnings to their citizens to avoid visiting the country where thousands of protesters have clashed with security forces.
"The Japanese government advises those planning to travel or stay in any part of Egypt to postpone the plan for whatever the purpose is," the Japanese foreign ministry said.
The government also urged Japanese nationals already in Egypt to leave the country if they can do so, or to stay away from demonstrations and rallies, and 'never try to take photos of protesters or police officers'.
The ministry also set up an emergency taskforce, headed by Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara, ordering diplomatic missions in Middle East and Africa to ensure the safety of Japanese citizens in the region.
Australia upgraded its security warning for Egypt, urging travellers to think twice before visiting the country.
The travel advisory upgrade lifted the warning for Egypt to the second highest of 'reconsider your need to travel', the same as is current for Tunisia and Lebanon.
Australia's highest warning is 'do not travel'.
"We advise you to reconsider your need to travel to Egypt because of ongoing civil unrest and the high threat of terrorist attack," the Department for Foreign Affairs and Trade advisory states.
"If you are currently in Egypt, and concerned about the security situation, you should consider leaving if it is safe to do so."
Australia also warned that it continued to receive reports of terror attacks being planned on a range of targets, including places frequented by foreigners in Egypt.
"Tourist areas throughout Egypt, especially the Red Sea and Sinai resorts, are potential terrorist targets," it said. "Past terrorist attacks have targeted foreign tourists and places of worship."
In Europe, Belgian travel agents decided to suspend all departures of package tours for Egypt until Tuesday, but did not plan to repatriate tourists already there.
The national travel agents' association said operators were altering tours to avoid the main cities like Cairo and Alexandria, but added that the situation in the Red Sea resorts was normal.
Association chief Veerle De Boeck said some 4,000 Belgian tourists were currently in Egypt, most of them in the resorts, where things remained 'very calm'.
French travel agents made a similar decision on Friday, and were to meet again on Saturday to review the situation.
A number of European countries have advised against visiting Egypt, including Austria, Belgium, Britain, Bulgaria, Denmark, France and Sweden, as well as the United States and Israel.
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