US lifts travel warning on Kenyan coast
A picture of a hotel near the beach in Malindi taken on February 23, 2015. The US has lifted travel restrictions it had issued to its citizens on visits to most parts of the Kenyan coast. FILE PHOTO | KEVIN ODIT | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- The US also cautioned those visiting Old Town in Mombasa, saying they should do so during the day.
- The Barack Obama administration asked its citizens in Kenya to be vigilant and be aware of their own personal security.
The United States government has lifted travel restrictions it issued to its citizens on visits to most parts of Kenya’s coastal region.
The US Embassy stated travel restrictions to Malindi through Mombasa and Kwale counties to the Tanzanian border had been lifted.
“There are no longer general restrictions on travel to Malindi city in Kilifi County through Mombasa and Kwale counties to the Tanzanian border,” an email sent to its citizens and staff stated.
The US, however, restricted its staff from traveling to towns near the border with Somalia and cautioned them against using the Likoni ferry in Mombasa.
The US also cautioned those visiting Old Town in Mombasa, saying they should do so during the day.
The Barack Obama administration asked its citizens in Kenya to be vigilant and be aware of their own personal security.
The US issued a travel advisory in May this year and restricted its personnel from visiting Eastleigh in Nairobi and the coastal counties of Mombasa, Kwale, Kilifi and Lamu.
The travel restrictions also covered Tana River County, north of Pate Island, Kiwavu and Kiunga on the Kenya-Somalia border, and northeastern Kenya towns, including El Wak, Wajir, Garissa, Mandera and Liboi.
Any travel to the restricted areas by any US Embassy personnel had to be pre-approved by appropriate embassy offices.
