Turkey sees drop in foreign visitors after attacks

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — The number of tourists visiting Turkey dropped by 10 percent in February compared to last year, in a worrying sign for the country whose economy relies on tourism revenues.

Tourism Ministry figures released on Tuesday showed that 1.24 million foreigners had arrived in Turkey last month, down from 1.38 million recorded last year.

The drop comes has Turkey – a neighbor of Syria – has been hit by a series of terror attacks, including two in Istanbul that killed 12 German tourists in January, and three Israelis and an Iranian earlier this month. Israel issued a travel warning on Monday advising its citizens to leave Turkey.

A row with Moscow over Turkey’s downing of a Russian plane has also resulted in fewer visitors from Russia.

By AP