Is Traveling to Israel Safe?

According to its official website, the U.S. State Department issues Travel Warnings "when the State Department recommends that Americans avoid travel to a certain country because the situation is dangerous or unstable."

Whereas Travel Warnings are recommendations that American travelers avoid the country for which the warning is issued, Travel Alerts, according to the State Department, "are issued to disseminate information quickly about terrorist threats and other relatively short-term conditions overseas that pose significant risks to the security of American travelers."

For further information on Travel Warnings, visit the U.S. Department of State website listed below in References.

The State Department "strongly urges" that Americans not travel to the Gaza Strip and southern Israel, as a fatal bombing of a U.S. Embassy convoy occurred in Gaza in 2003 and the threat to Americans remains. In addition, the State Department advises that the U.S. consular staff's ability to assist U.S. citizens in the area is hindered and "extremely limited" due to "prohibition on travel by U.S. Government employees into the Gaza Strip."

The State Department also recommends avoiding the West Bank, as violent skirmishes there persist with no end in sight. Disturbances may occur frequently; in addition, the Israeli Defense Forces conduct security raids to infiltrate terrorist activities and arrest terrorist suspects.

The threat of terrorist attacks in Israel looms and is extant. For example, two fatal bulldozer attacks on civilians occurred in Jerusalem, one in July 2008 and the other in March 2008. A bombing also occurred in Dimona in February 2008.

Additionally, rockets were sent into northern Israel from Lebanon in January 2009.

The U.S. State Department should always be consulted for overseas travel. Go to www.state.gov.