US places 23 nations on ‘Do Not Travel’ list, warns citizens to stay away

THE United States Department of State has advised its citizens not to travel to 23 countries, placing them under its highest travel advisory, Level 4: ‘Do Not Travel,’ over security concerns and limited consular assistance.

In an updated advisory shared through the department’s TravelGov X account and sighted on Saturday, the US government said the Level 4 classification is reserved for destinations where conditions pose serious risks to travellers or where its ability to provide assistance to American citizens is severely restricted.

“We issue Travel Advisories with Levels 1–4. Level 4 means DO NOT TRAVEL. We assign Level 4 based on local conditions and/or our limited ability to help Americans there,” the department said in a notice posted on Thursday.

It added: “These places are dangerous. Do not go for ANY reason.”

Among the countries placed under the highest advisory are 11 African nations: Burkina Faso, the Central African Republic, Chad, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Libya, Mali, Niger, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan and Uganda.

The full list of countries under the Level 4 advisory includes Afghanistan, Belarus, Burkina Faso, Burma (Myanmar), Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Haiti, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Libya, Mali, Niger, North Korea, Russia, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Uganda, Ukraine and Yemen.

The updated warning comes months after the State Department maintained Nigeria at Level 3, urging Americans to reconsider travel to the country while classifying several Nigerian states under the stricter Level 4 category because of security concerns.

The states listed under the ‘Do Not Travel’ designation in Nigeria include Borno, Jigawa, Kogi, Kwara, Niger, Plateau, Taraba, Yobe and northern Adamawa in the North. In the South-South and South-East, the advisory covers Abia, Anambra, Bayelsa, Delta, Enugu, Imo and Rivers states, excluding Port Harcourt.

According to the State Department, Americans should reconsider travel to Nigeria because of crime, terrorism, kidnapping, civil unrest and inconsistent healthcare services, while travel to the designated Level 4 states should be avoided altogether.

Responding to the advisory, the Nigerian government said the US decision was a routine precaution based on its internal assessment procedures and did not accurately reflect the country’s overall security situation.

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