A Sri Lankan handicrafts vendor and tourists on Galle beach, a day after Tamil Tiger suicide bombers attacked a naval base nearby. Photograph: Lakruwan Wanniarachchi/AFP

Anyone who has visited Sri Lanka will share my sadness at its

resurgent civil conflict, which spilled into the southern tourist

belt for the first time this week.

Before the devastating tsunami of 2004, the country seemed to be

moving on from its turbulent past. And following the 2002 ceasefire

with the Tamil Tigers, it was looking to tourism as the catalyst for

development. Then came the Boxing Day wave, which set the country

another mighty challenge.

For many years, the UK Foreign Office advice has been to avoid the

north and east of the island, and tourism has grown healthily outside

these zones, with 600,000 overseas visitors expected this year. So

what now? Will Wednesday's Tamil Tiger attack on a naval base in

Galle harbour frighten off potential visitors and operators?

Adventure operator Explore, which takes over 600 travellers to Sri

Lanka annually and which currently has two groups out there, said its

tours would continue as planned but that the situation was being

monitored closely.

Director Derek Moore explained: 'We have continued to support Sri

Lanka over the years - through wartime and the tsunami - and we don't

intend to stop supporting our friends there now.'

Promisingly for the Sri Lankan tourism industry, the UK government

has not changed its overall level of advice, though it warns British

visitors of 'an increasing risk' of being caught up in attacks which

are 'not confined to the north and east'. Its advice is that tourists

should avoid military installations as well as large gatherings such

as demonstrations.

Over at the Sri Lankan tourist board, a security update issued today

stresses that all attacks have been targeted at the military and that

'no threat to tourists exists'. It reads: 'The situation in Sri

Lanka's tourism areas and Colombo is normal. The roads are busy,

people are shopping, and restaurants and bars are busy.'

Neil Sealy of regional specialist TransIndus echoed the Sri Lankan

tourist board: 'The main sights of the island are safe to visit.

These include the 'Cultural Triangle' of Anuradhapura, Sigiriya and

Polonnaruwa; Kandy; Nuwara Eliya, the tea country; and Yala National

Park.' Although he admits that the negative headlines are already

having an impact on his future bookings.

With two high-profile, high casualty attacks this week alone, the

perception of general insecurity may be enough to derail the

country's bullish tourism predictions for this year. All hopes will

be pinned on fresh peace talks to be held in Switzerland at the end

of the month.

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