World Travel News

US renews travel warning to Pak

The US has renewed its travel warning to Pakistan urging Americans not to undertake nonessential travel in that country.

The travel warning has been renewed in view of the “ongoing security concerns” about possible terror attacks.

“This travel warning is being reissued to remind U.S. citizens of ongoing security concerns in Pakistan… Due to on-going concerns about the possibility of terrorist activity directed against American citizens and interests, the Department of State continues to warn U.S. citizens to defer non-essential travel to Pakistan,” a Department advisory yesterday said.

“The U.S. Embassy in Islamabad and the consulates in Karachi, Lahore, and Peshawar continue to operate at reduced staffing levels. Family members of official Americans assigned to the Embassy in Islamabad and to the three consulates in Pakistan were ordered to leave the country in March 2002 and have not been allowed to return,” the advisory noted.

It said Al-Qaida and Taliban elements “continue to operate” inside Pakistan, particularly along the porous Afghan border region.

“Their presence, coupled with that of indigenous sectarian and militant groups in Pakistan, continues to pose potential danger to American citizens. Continuing tensions in the Middle East also increase the possibility of violence against Westerners in Pakistan.”

As security has tightened at official U.S. facilities, terrorists and their sympathizers have demonstrated their willingness and capability to attack more vulnerable targets, including facilities where Americans are generally known to congregate or visit, such as hotels, clubs, restaurants, places of worship, schools, or outdoor recreation events, it said.

This travel warning supersedes the travel warning dated September 24, 2004, it said.

Murray to travel to Middle East

Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., said Friday she will travel to the Middle East next week as part of a bipartisan Senate delegation.

The trip will focus on security issues and exploring ways in which the United States can support developing democracies around the world, Murray said.

The delegation will be led by Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nevada. Due to security concerns, details of the trip will not be released in advance.

“I look forward to meeting with Washington state service personnel and hearing from the region’s top leaders about the progress being made in security and stability,” Murray said in a statement. “These firsthand experiences will help to inform us about improvements in the region and give our delegation the opportunity to express the support of our nation.”

Also on the trip will be Sens. Richard Durbin, D-Ill.; Robert Bennett, R-Utah; Barbara Boxer, D-Calif.; Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn.; and Ken Salazar, D-Colo.

Sen. Gordon Smith, R-Ore., said Thursday he will visit the region on a separate trip. Smith’s itinerary includes stops in Iraq and Afghanistan, where he will visit Oregon troops, review security forces and meet with top leaders.

U.S. air travel surging

More than 1 billion people a year will be boarding planes in the United States within a decade, nearly half again as many as those now using an aviation system showing signs of being overburdened.

The Federal Aviation Administration, which released the forecast Thursday, faces spending cuts for runways, air traffic control equipment and buildings. But the agency’s administrator, Marion Blakey, said she is confident there will be enough money to accommodate such growth in air traffic.

“We are redesigning airspace, deploying new software that will help increase capacity, and putting new procedures in place,” Blakey said. “We will be ready. Lawmakers and aviation advocates were not so sure.

Building is not keeping up with the increase in passengers, said David Stempler, president of the Air Travelers Association. “That just spells congestion and delays for passengers.”

Already, flights have been limited at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport because too many planes were trying to take off and land, thereby causing delays across the country. Ruth Marlin, executive vice president of the air traffic controllers union, said many passengers will do a lot of waiting in 2015 if things do not change.

“The FAA is trying to do more and more with less and less, and that is putting an incredible strain on the system,” she said.

Sen. Patty Murray, top Democrat on a Senate Appropriations subcommittee on aviation, pointed out that the administration has proposed $77 million in cuts for air traffic control modernization, in addition to $400 million cut this year. In 2004, the FAA was authorized to spend $2.9 billion.

DeLay denies he violated House rules on overseas travel

House Majority Leader Tom DeLay denied Tuesday that he violated House travel rules.

Responding to reports in the Washington Post and elsewhere, the Texas Republican blamed Democrats for instigating the stories to undermine his effectiveness and said he was eager to meet with leaders of the House ethics panel to review his travel history. “We want to work with the ethics committee to prove how baseless these and other allegations are,” DeLay said.

But it is not clear that members of the committee have authority to act, since they have not been able to agree on its operating rules.

DeLay most specifically took issue with an article in the Post on Saturday. It said that in 2000 he voted against anti-gambling legislation two months after he was a guest on a $70,000 European trip indirectly financed by an Indian tribe and a gambling services company.

DeLay, who has a history of supporting anti-gambling measures, said he opposed the proposal because it contained exemptions that could have expanded Internet gambling. “That is why I voted against the bill. That is why a lot of members voted against the bill,” said DeLay, who said he supported a later version in 2003 after some loopholes were closed.

Liz Spayd, assistant managing editor for national news at the Post, said she was satisfied with the paper’s account. “His office has not called us to challenge any facts in our story, and if they did, we would listen to his concerns,” she said.

Regarding a second trip that has drawn scrutiny, DeLay last week wrote to the leaders of the ethics panel saying that he had only just learned that the sponsor of an August 2001 visit to South Korea had been registered as a foreign agent. House rules prohibit accepting travel from such an entity.

“We were therefore as surprised as everyone when this new information was brought to us this week,” said the letter from DeLay and Reps. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen and Ander Crenshaw, both Florida Republicans, who also took the trip. They offered to review the matter with the panel.