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Kenyan hoteliers criticize U.S. travel warning

Xinhua, January 17, 2017 Adjust font size:

Kenya's hoteliers on Tuesday dismissed latest travel advisory issued by the United States over terror threats in the country's tourist resort region.

Kenya Association of Hotelkeepers and Caterer said the advisory issued by Washington on Jan. 13 is unjustified, citing the reduction of terrorist attacks in the region.

Speaking to Xinhua in Mombasa, the association's Coast branch executive officer Sam Ikwaye urged traditional source markets, including Britain and France, to ignore the advisory.

"The U.S. has the responsibility to protect its citizens but it's unfair to issue an advisory without citing valid grounds. We read mischief in the latest move by the U.S.," Ikwaye said.

In its revised advisory, the United States warned its citizens against visiting Kenya's Coast and Northeastern region, citing terror attack threats by Al-Shabaab and high crime rates.

The U.S. State Department specifically urged U.S. citizens to avoid traveling near Kenya's border with Somalia, including all of Lamu County, which in the past has been a major tourist destination.

The advisory cited Mandera, Wajir and Garissa, Tana River and Lamu counties among those that U.S. citizens should avoid.

The East African nation's coastal towns are the backbone of the country's thriving tourism industry, which has been hit by the fear of terror attacks and the kidnapping of foreigners by Somali pirates from resorts near the border with Somalia.

The tourism sector has suffered a decline in the number of tourists arriving since September 2011 when the Somali militant group Al-Shabaab carried out kidnappings of tourists and the Spanish volunteers.

Chief Executive Officer at Heritage Hotels Mohamed Hersi said the media should report objectively and stop misleading foreign countries that rely on press reports to issue advisory.

In a contrasting comment, French ambassador to Kenya Antoine Sivan recently termed Mombasa a safe haven, saying the security of the coastal city has significantly improved over the years. Endit