The attack on the Israeli Embassy will have a negative impact on the tourism sector, Head of International Tourism at the Egyptian Tourism Authority (ETA) Samy Mahmoud said Sunday. Mahmoud added that Tourism Minister Mounir Fakhri Abdel Nour has been tasked with monitoring the reactions of international tourism companies to the embassy incident. “[The] embassy storming incident will have a negative impact on next winter's bookings," Mahmoud told Al-Masry Al-Youm. Mahmoud emphasized that he expected a sharp decline in tourism to Egypt despite the sector's recent recovery. Over the next 48 hours, he said, the ETA will monitor the impact of the embassy incident on 17 countries that provide a steady supply of tourists to Egypt. Mahmoud warned of the poor security situation in the country and said that the Emergency Law, which has been reactivated by the government, “will not have a positive impact.” He added that images of the attack on the Giza Security Directorate, which caused a fire, will also have a negative impact on tourism. Vice President of the Chamber of Hotels Nagy Eryan said that he has already received a number of concerned inquiries from British tourism companies following the embassy incident. Translated from the Arabic Edition
