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(Image source: Wikimedia Common / Ricardo Liberato)
BY MATT MORENO
Is it safe to visit the great pyramids? The
U.S. embassy in Egypt says American tourists should be careful when visiting the site,
but Egyptian officials say all is well.
The U.S. Embassy released a statement saying it "... has become aware of an increasing
number of incidents at or near the Giza Pyramids. The majority of these incidents are attributed
to over-aggressive vendors, though the degree of aggressiveness in some cases is closer
to criminal conduct."
The embassy says it's had reports of groups of individuals pounding on vehicle doors and
sometimes attempting to open them. It warns there seems to be a lack of security in the
area. (Via National Geographic)
"Lack of business made the sellers, the suite vendors, very persistent and annoying and
attacking, you see, by force. Pushing hard at tourists in any way to get some money."
(Via BBC)
An administrator at the American University in Cairo, who's lived in Egypt for 13 years,
says things have changed recently. He told USA Today in March his wife was harassed by
vendors and police asked for money.
But, Egyptian officials say the stories are "baseless." The Egyptian Minister of Antiquities
denies any problems, saying a group of 1000 students held a graduation at the pyramids
recently and everything was fine. (Via AhramOnline)
A writer for AmericaBlog says Egypt is probably worried about declining tourism revenue. "This
is awful news for Egypt's tourist industry, that's suffered over the years, first from
terrorism, then from the recent political unrest. So the news of the pyramids becoming
increasingly unsafe ... isn't going to help."
The U.S. isn't the only country to warn against possible dangers in Egypt. The United Kingdom
warned against traveling in the Sinai Peninsula due to an increasing threat of kidnappings.