War tourism in Afghanistan: adventure or reckless hedonism?Taliban attack on tourists in Afghanistan - Polidicks

[QUOTE]Kabul (AFP) - Thousands of people are fleeing the conflict roiling Afghanistan, but American backpacker John Milton recently made the reverse journey to the war-ravaged country -- for a holiday.Armed with little more than travel guidebooks and an unflagging spirit of adventure, hardy bands of "war tourists" such as Milton visit Afghanistan's pristine mountains and medieval ruins every year, ignoring warnings of kidnappings and bombings. A Taliban attack on Thursday on a group of American and European tourists in western Herat province, which left some of them wounded, has brought into sharp focus such global thrill-seekers who imperil their lives to vacation in war zones. "Visiting conflict zones and off-the-beaten-path destinations is so much more rewarding than the usual global tourist destinations," said Milton, a 46-year-old former investment banker, who visited Afghanistan in June and has also vacationed in Somalia and North Korea. "(My) family and friends think I am a fool to take such risks but... if you are not willing to risk the unusual, then you will have to settle for the ordinary. I just don't want to die without having any scars!" In Thursday's attack a tourist bus carrying eight Britons, three Americans and one German national came under Taliban fire as it was being escorted through a volatile district in Herat by the Afghan army. The attack, which left seven people wounded including the Afghan minibus driver, prompted scorn on social media, with many questioning why the tourists were travelling overland at a time when most Western embassies warn their citizens against all travel in the country. The owner of Hinterland Travel, a Britain-based adventure travel agency which reportedly organised the tour, was also said to be among the injured and was pilloried for what was widely perceived as recklessness. He was not reachable for comment. - 'Worth the risk' - But warzone tourism is hardly limited to Afghanistan. In 2013, Japanese trucker Toshifumi Fujimoto, bored with his humdrum job, jaunted through the war-torn Syrian city of Aleppo, telling AFP that his previous adventures had taken him through Yemen among other Middle East hotspots. Such tourists are the exception rather than the norm, said James Willcox, founder of another England-based adventure travel operator Untamed Borders, which organises trips to Afghanistan, Somalia and Somaliland.[/QUOTE] [url]https://www.yahoo.com/news/war-tourism-afghanistan-adventure-reckless-hedonism-033043270.html?ref=gs[/url] Because potentially getting kidnapped and needing the country to send either ransom money or Spec Ops to rescue your ass is 'thrilling'

[quote]In Thursday's attack a tourist bus carrying eight Britons, three Americans and one German national came under Taliban fire as it was being escorted through a volatile district in Herat by the Afghan army.[/quote] What a great use of army resources!

[QUOTE=Headhumpy;50842990]What a great use of army resources![/QUOTE] You think the the money these tourists bring into the country is worth more than the fucking pittance they pay the afgahn army? Sure fucking is.

"It's like one o' dem Jeremy Renner movies!"

Not going to be long until one or two of these guys get kidnapped, held for ransom, and beheaded by ISIS.

[QUOTE=Apache249;50843646]Not going to be long until one or two of these guys get kidnapped, held for ransom, and beheaded by ISIS.[/QUOTE] Since when has ISIS been in Afghanistan?

[QUOTE=archangel125;50843668]Since when has ISIS been in Afghanistan?[/QUOTE] OP mentions a guy who went to Syria. It's safe to assume that if someone went to Syria or Iraq they could very likely end up meeting ISIS.

[QUOTE=archangel125;50843668]Since when has ISIS been in Afghanistan?[/QUOTE] [url]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_in_Afghanistan_(2015%E2%80%93present)[/url] [editline]7th August 2016[/editline] They're there

[QUOTE=Apache249;50843713][url]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_in_Afghanistan_(2015%E2%80%93present)[/url] [editline]7th August 2016[/editline] They're there[/QUOTE] isis controls land in 8 countries now. insane

[QUOTE=Daniel Smith;50844832]isis controls land in 8 countries now. insane[/QUOTE] They have an extremely small foothold anywhere but Syria though but yeah. ISIS only has a few small pockets in Afghanistan and just about any other country except Libya where they actually have one or two port towns. However, it seems that their Libya foothold is getting shelled pretty hard by both CJTF–OIR and the Libyan army.