Egypt

Huge protests in early July 2013 lead the Army to remove President Morsi. Presidential elections were held in May 2014, ex Army Chief Sisi won overwhelming but very poor electoral turnout. Opposition to the Sisi government is growing, economically Egypt is suffering as the tourist trade has offered as a result of terrorism although through 2017 & 2018 tourism is recovering. Presidential elections were held in late March 2018 and President was re-elected as there is no effective opposition. The threat from terrorism remains high, a tourist bus was bombed on 29 Dec 2018 at Giza killing 4 people. Egypt is almost a police state so care must be taken to adhere all rules and respect customs. 

Israel

We currently advise against all travel to Israel in light of the conflict which broke out on 7th October 2023 as a result of attacks by Hamas and subsequent IDF operations in Gaza and in the latter part of 2024 aganist Hezbollah in Lebanon. The IDF now control virtually all of Gaza, their operations have killed over 40,000 people in Gaza, meanwhile Hamas are still holding hostages. International efforts to broker a ceasefire continue. Hezbollah has been very severely weakened as a result of intensive strikes against it's leadership in Lebanon including the killing of its long time leader Hassan Nazrallah. 

Iran was beginning to open up to trade and tourism following the successful conclusion of the nuclear energy talks under US President Obama and relations with the West improved.   But in May 2018 President Trump announced the US was pulling out of the nuclear deal and since then the rial has fallen in value and further US sanctions were imposes on 5 Nov 2018. The killing of General Soliemani by the US in Iraq on 3 Jan 2020 resulted in a further deteroration of relations between Iran and the US. Travel Iran is NOT recommended in any capacity at the moment. A slightly more moderate president Masoud Pezeshkian was appointed after Raisi died in a helicopter crash but relations with the west are strained and destruction of much of Hezbollah in Lebanon by the IDF has further weakened Iran's position in the Middle East, now compounded by the loss of the Assad regime in Syria.