Kedanian Says Tension Strikes Lebanon at a Time of Tourism Recovery
Tourism Minister Avedis Kedanian met with President Michel Aoun on Tuesday and relayed the “security” concerns of tourists bound to visit Lebanon in the wake of the Mountain incident, noting that Aoun has appeased these fears.
Kedanian said tension has struck Lebanon at a time when its tourism has shown recovery signals.
“Tourism has grown despite the concerns of tourists who arrived in Lebanon after the (Mountain) incident. But President Michel Aoun has assured that things are on the right track now,” said Kedanian from the Presidential Palace.
“In the past two days, I have been sickened by what was happening on the ground because the tourism sector is already suffering and if politicians stop “flogging” themselves, only then we will be able to overcome the crisis,” he said, lamenting how political rhetoric escalated in the past weeks against the backdrop of the deadly Qabrshmoun incident.
Late in June, two bodyguards of a state minister for refugee affairs were killed and two others were badly injured in armed clashes in Qabrshmoun.
On growth of tourism in Lebanon, the Minister said: “There is a remarkable growth in the number of tourists from European countries by 30% more than the previous year, and a noticeable increase, but not enough, for the number of tourists coming from Russia.”
He said the number of tourists from Saudi Arabia has doubled compared to 2018, “we have received 44,000 Saudi tourists in the first half of 2019 compared to 22,000 last year.”
Source: Naharnet
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