TUI relaunches holiday packages to Tunisia – two and a half years after terror attack that killed 30 Brits
Flights to Tunisian resorts had been banned since an attack by an Islamic State extremist in Port El Kantaoui in 2015, but the ban was lifted last July
TUI has started selling holidays to Tunisia again - two and a half years after 30 Brits were killed during an attack by an Islamic State extremist in a popular coastal resort.
The travel company is starting small – sending customers to three hotels in Hammamet from May, with four flights a week from Bristol, Manchester, Birmingham and Gatwick to Enfidha.
Flights to resorts in the north African country had been banned since 30 Brits were killed during an attack by an Islamic State extremist in Port El Kantaoui in 2015, but the ban was lifted last July.
On June 26 in 2015, Imperial Marhaba hotel in the Mediterranean resort of Sousse was hosting 565 guests when Seifeddine Rezgui launched an attack on people on the beach.
He used a Kalashnikov assault rifle he had concealed in a beach umbrella to fire at tourists.
The terror killer said he would not kill Tunisians or Muslims – so locals formed a human wall to protect tourists.
The terrorist then entered the hotel, gunning down tourists who crossed his path - in total 38 people were killed, 30 of them British.
For two years since the attack, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) advised against all but essential travel to Tunisia and warned against going to certain areas all together.
As a result, there were no direct flights between the UK and Monastir or Enfidah airports, although there were still daily Tunis Air flights from Tunis Carthage to London.
TUI's main rival Thomas Cook started selling packages to the country last August, just weeks after the travel ban was lifted.
According to , TUI will send a limit of 20,000 passengers to the country this summer, compared to 80,000 in its peak a few years ago.
The three hotels they will offer packages to are Magic Life Hotel, Splashworld and Sensimar - all from the Concept Hotel group.
Security in the country has improved enormously in the years since the attack, although the Foreign Office does still warn that the risk of another attack is high.
A state of emergency has been in place since a suicide attack on a police bus in November 2015 and is renewed every three months - the most recent renewal happening last November.
The Foreign Office says of the current security situation: "The Tunisian government has improved protective security in major cities and tourist resorts, but terrorists are still very likely to try to carry out attacks.
"Security forces remain on a high state of alert in Tunis and other places. You should be vigilant at all times, including around religious sites and festivals.
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"Follow the advice of the Tunisian security authorities and your travel company if you have one."
A Tui UK & Ireland spokesperson told Travel Weekly: "We follow the FCO advice for all destinations we operate to as well as referencing the FCO Travel Aware campaign across our website, customer documentation and in our stores.
"[We] encourage everyone to check the FCO website regularly for the latest travel information.”
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