British travellers are being urged to avoid visiting the city of Timbuktu and other areas in northern Mali because of the threat of terrorism.
The Foreign Office has updated its travel advisory to include the famous destination, warning that the risk of terrorism, particular kidnapping, is now high in Timbuktu .
In June, British tourist Edwin Dyer was killed in Mali after he and his party were kidnapped near the Mali-Niger border by a group which claimed to have links to al-Qaeda.
The new travel advice reads: "There is a high threat from terrorism. Terrorists have been involved in kidnaps in the region and we believe that further kidnap attacks are likely."
"Attacks could be indiscriminate, including in places frequented by expatriates and foreign travellers."
On a visit to northern Mali, Foreign Office Minister Ivan Lewis said there was a real danger the security situation could deteriorate further.
However, local authorities insist the threat of terrorism has been exaggerated and that the streets of Timbuktu are safe, with incidents occurring far away from the town itself.
They claim such warnings have already had a huge effect on local tourism, with the number of visitors to Timbuktu in 2009 down by 50 per cent from last year.
Government Issues Travel Warning For Mali
Wed, 02 Dec 2009
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