Security

There is an increased global risk of terrorism. No country is immune from a terrorist attack, and no person is immune from becoming a victim of an attack. Terrorists have little regard for civilian casualties and, in many cases, attacks are designed to maximise casualties.

Although New Zealand travellers are unlikely to be targeted deliberately, they are usually indistinguishable from any “Western” tourist, and frequent places where other Western tourists are found. This puts New Zealanders at the same risk as others.

Wherever you are, you should keep yourself informed about the latest alerts and stay aware of your surroundings in areas where large numbers of people congregate, such as shopping malls, markets, tourist sites, monuments, demonstrations and on any public transport.

Terrorist attacks have taken place in many major European cities and the region remains vulnerable to attacks from Islamic and other extremist groups.

In Russia, Moscow has experienced a number of bombings carried out by Chechen separatists. They have been responsible for a series of incidents in towns in southern Russia (the northern Caucasus) and particularly the province of Chechnya itself.

In Turkey, Kurdish separatists have carried out attacks in Istanbul and other areas popular with tourists. Such attacks are likely to continue.