News Watch

The US Department of State urges people to avoid all travel to Lebanon due to ongoing security concerns. Extremist groups operate in Lebanon, including Hezbollah, IS, ANF and the Abdullah Azzam Brigades, all of which the US government has designated as terrorist organizations. 

Episodic clashes between the Lebanese army and Syrian-based extremists have occurred along the border with Syria since August 2014. In the past two years, two US citizens have died in bombings and two have been...

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The Department of State warns that there are high threats of terrorism and kidnappings in Algeria and advises against traveling to remote areas of southern and eastern Algeria. Terrorist groups and various self-proclaimed Islamic State affiliates remain active in the region. 

The majority of terrorist attacks, including bombings, false roadblocks, kidnappings and ambushes, occur in the mountainous areas to the east of Algiers and in the expansive Saharan desert regions of the south...

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The US Department of State warns of the risks of travel to Eritrea. The government of Eritrea continues to restrict the travels of all foreign nationals. These restrictions require all visitors to apply 10 days in advance for permission to travel beyond 15 miles of the capital, Asmar, which is valid for the approved final destination only and does not allow for stops along the way.

In addition, a serious problem in parts of the country are land mines and unexploded ordnance left over...

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In the Central African Republic (CAR), there was a coup by Seleka rebels in 2013. The US Department of State warns travelers that, despite the eventual creation of a transitional government in January 2014 and the ongoing political transition process, even with the presence of international peacekeepers, the security situation remains highly unstable. 

North and South Korea exchanged fire across the western part of the demilitarized zone on Aug. 20. 

The salvo began after a rocket fired from North Korea toward the South Korean town of Yeoncheon landed in an uninhabited area. The South Korean military responded by firing dozens of artillery shells toward the suspected origin of the rocket. There were no casualties reported by either nation, but at least 80 South Korean civilians were evacuated, with hundreds of others told to take...

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As ITN went to press, the State Department had travel warnings on 37 destinations: Afghanistan, Algeria, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Colombia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, El Salvador, Eritrea, Haiti, Honduras, Iran, Iraq, Israel/West Bank/Gaza, Kenya, North Korea, Lebanon, Libya, Mali, Mauritania, Mexico, Nepal, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Republic of South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Ukraine, Venezuela and Yemen...

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In the Indonesian province of West Papua, a Trigana Air flight heading from Jayapura to Oksibil and carrying 54 people, all Indonesians, crashed in the jungle, near its destination, on Aug. 16. There were no survivors. Inclement weather may have been a factor in the crash.

Since it began operating in 1991, Trigana Air has had 14 serious incidents, including 10 involving the loss of the aircraft, and is on the European Union’s blacklist of banned carriers. In the US, the Federal...

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Tropical Storm Erika made landfall on the Caribbean island of Dominica on Aug. 27, killing at least 20 people and damaging buildings, roads and bridges and the main airport, which became blocked by debris and a wrecked plane. The storm dropped more than 12 inches of rain and caused a landslide in the town of Petite Savanne.