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Belarusian travel agencies suspend tours to Egypt

Belarusian travel agencies have suspended tours to Egypt until the situation in that country goes back to normal, Vital Syamashka, spokesman for the Ministry of Sports and Tourism, told BelaPAN.

The Belarusian foreign ministry earlier urged Belarusian tourists to avoid visiting Egypt amid massive anti-government protests.

There were 1,172 citizens of Belarus staying in Egypt as of Friday morning, Mr. Syamashka said. The Belarusian tourists who want to cut their holidays short are flown out of Egypt ahead of schedule, he said. There have been no reports of Belarusians injured in the violent unrest, he said.

Belavia has temporarily suspended flights from Minsk to Hurghada, Egypt, because of the unrest in the country, Anatol Husaraw, director general of the Belarusian national airline, said on Thursday.

He said that the number of Belarusian tourists heading for Egypt had “substantially” decreased.

“Our next flight was scheduled for February 8, but we won't carry tourists there. We will only take them away,” Mr. Husaraw said. “We plan to carry out three more flights to remove tourists who have come there from Minsk, and then we will suspend all flights.”

Belarusian tourists can get into Egypt through Moscow, Kyiv and a number of other cities in neighboring countries, Mr. Syamashka noted.