Is it okay to visit Israel?

A truce in the Middle East has been kept for around a day and is still holding: But as Lebanese civilians return to their homes is it sensible to visit Israel?

Israel's ministry of tourism is doing everything it can to reassure visitors that the country is safe to visit. However, as Hezbollah rockets continue to thunder into Israel, many people are staying away.

Tourism is vital to the Israeli economy and much of the country has been transformed by the money that travellers have brought to many areas.

Around three million people were expected to take a holiday in Israel this year, many from North America and Western Europe.

However, the US state department advised potential travellers in mid July: "To weigh carefully the risk of travel to Israel and Jerusalem at this time and to defer travel to affected parts of Israel."

The message from Israel is that travel to the southern parts of the country and unaffected areas is fine.

Officials note that many Israelis know about the conflict in the same way Americans and Britons do; from television coverage.

There are currently more than 100,000 tourists in Israel and flights and tours are going on as normal.

However, confidence is shaken and people are less willing to travel to a nation that has been involved in a major conflict that has cost around 1,000 deaths in Lebanon.

Many potential visitors do not feel it is right to visit a country that is still fighting a war.

However, some more accustomed travellers would argue the risk is no greater than it has been from Hamas and terrorist groups in the past and that only certain areas in the north are affected.

The accepted general piece of advice is that if you wish to travel to Israel, avoid the north and the Gaza region.