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Uhuru Kenyatta

WASHINGTON. – President Uhuru Kenyatta has urged the Obama administration to lift travel advisories on Kenya, arguing the warnings have hurt Kenya’s tourism industry. Kenya’s Ambassador to the US, Robinson Njeru Githae, yesterday said the Jubilee government had demonstrated its commitment to fighting terrorism, and the US and its Western allies have no excuse to maintain their travel warnings.

Githae, who recently presented his credentials to President Barack Obama, said security laws recently passed by Parliament were meant to specifically deal with both local and foreign terrorist threats.

“That is why I have made it my first priority to impress upon the US government to lift the travel advisories and if they can’t lift them wholesale, they should at least downgrade them,” he told the Nation in Washington, DC.

“These advisories are hurting our tourism industry and we believe that in view of the government’s commitment to routing out terrorism, the advisories are not justified.”

In June last year, the US State Department warned Americans about the risk of traveling to Kenya as a result of terrorist attacks by the Somalia-based Al-Shabaab militants.

In the advisories, the State Department said the US government continued to receive information about potential terrorist threats aimed at US, Western and Kenyan interests in Kenya, especially in Nairobi and the coastal towns of Mombasa and Diani.

“Terrorist acts can include suicide operations, bombings, kidnappings, attacks on civil aviation, and attacks on maritime vessels in or near Kenyan ports,” the statement read in part.

“Although the pursuit of those responsible for previous terrorist activities continues, many of those involved remain at large and still operate in the region,” the statement added. – Daily Nation.