Travel News
THE Prime Minister has urged Australians living in Egypt to leave the country, as the death toll from the country's violent uprising reportedly exceeds 100.
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade upgraded its travel advisory warning for Egypt to the highest "do not travel'' category and boosted consular resources to support Australians living there.
About 870 Australians are registered in Egypt but Julia Gillard believes the number is more likely to be ``in the thousands''.
"Stay away from demonstrations, and if it is safe to travel to (an exit point in) Egypt, then do so,'' she said.
The Egyptian President has declared a curfew and called the army in to try and stop the protests but clashes between security forces and demonstrators calling for an end to Hosni Mubarak's 30-year rule have been deadly.
Safwat Elbanna, director of travel company, Egyptian Reservation Centre, said the situation in Egypt would "cripple'' the country's tourism industry.
Mr Elbanna has lost $60,000 worth of holiday bookings from Australia, while his Egyptian office, which offers inbound and outbound tours, has been hit by hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of cancellations due to the curfews.
``Every tour that we have been working on for the last five months has been cancelled,'' Mr Elbanna said.
