Most college graduations have taken place across the country, as have most high school commencement ceremonies. With Memorial Day weekend ending after Monday, the summer vacation will have officially begun for teachers, students and lots of parents.
Many vacations include trips to beaches, mountains and other touristy places in America. But for those who prefer to travel abroad, the U.S. State Department has issued a list of countries, or even pockets within some countries, where they advise Americans to not go until further notice.
This includes some states in Mexico, parts of South America and a swath through the Middle East.
Among the Mexican states on the U.S. State Department's 'Do Not Travel' list is Tamaulipas, which sits just south of the Texas border. According to the Houston Chronicle, the most notable crimes in Tamaulipas are murder, kidnapping, armed robbery, sexual assault, extortion and carjacking.
The entire country of Mexico is not on the "Do Not Travel" list, though, as it is broken into four levels of travel advisory, from the lightest being "exercise normal precautions" to "do not travel." The U.S. State Department released data that says violent crime in Mexico has spiked in the first quarter of 2019.
Here is the State Department's website that breaks down each country around the world.
There are 14 countries most recently under the latest "Do Not Travel" list (or Level 4 Risks), including:
- Iraq
- Sudan
- Yemen
- Venezuela
- Syria
- South Sudan
- Somalia
- Mali
- Libya
- Iran
- Haiti
- Central African Republic
- Afghanistan
- North Korea
Of note, Cuba, Russia, China and Saudi Arabia are not listed on the "Do Not Travel" list, but are listed on "increased caution list" as Level 2 travel risk countries.
Level 3 risks, or the "Reconsider Travel" list includes mostly African and Central American countries.
Countries can have their "risk" status changed at a moment's notice by the State Department, so the American government advises its citizens traveling abroad to monitor this website and keep caution to any changes that could possibly happen when they are traveling.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
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