REVEALED: The most dangerous countries in the world 2018

Syria

Unsurprisingly, Syria is in the top group of dangerous countries (Image: GETTY)

The Government department’s yearly analysis suggest four countries have become more dangerous in the last 12 months, compared with two, including and Saudi Arabia – which have actually got safer. The list breaks the world’s countries into seven descending groups in terms of danger, black, red, brown, orange, amber, yellow and blue. Travel to countries in the black group “is discouraged under any circumstances”, according to the ministry.

The group contains nine countries, three fewer than last year, with Iraq, Burundi and Mali all upgraded.

No new countries have been added to the list, which consists of Syria, Yemen, Afghanistan, Libya, the Central African Republic, Somalia, Eritrea, South Sudan and Papua New Guinea.

Potential visitors to countries in the red group are discouraged from doing so except “in extreme necessity”.

In this group, – where the economy has gone into meltdown in recent years, resulting in a mass exodus of refugees – is joined by Nicaragua, which is “promoted” as a result of perceived instability in the midst of the crisis which has engulfed the Sandinista government of Daniel Ortega.

Venezuela

Venezuela, in the grip of economic turmoil, is in the second-highest red group (Image: GETTY)

Haiti, North Korea, Egypt, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Burkina Faso and Chad are joined by the aforementioned Iraq, Burundi and Mali, while Saudi Arabia and the Republic of Congo drop out after being rated as having become safer.

Next up is the brown category, where visitors are urged to “travel with extreme caution and refrain from doing so in certain areas”.

Colombia, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador are in this group, alongside African countries Kenya, Cameroon, Republic of the Congo and South Africa, which are joined by Guinea and Ethiopia, as well as Thailand and the Philippines.

Israel, the Palestinian territories, and are also included.

Kim Jong-un

Tourists are advised against visiting North Korea, led by Kim Jong-un, unless strictly necessary (Image: GETTY)

The orange category, where tourists are advised to show caution and avoid some places, contains the highest number of countries, 51, with danger restricted to specific areas in some cases – for example, Brazil, Mexico, Peru and Ecuador.

is included for its high levels of seismic activity, South Korea for its border with Kim Yong-un’s regime in the North, and Russia for its lawless Caucasus region.

China and India are part of the group, as are several European states: Serbia, Cyprus, Armenia and Georgia. 

The list has been reduced from 53, with Rwanda and Trinidad and Tobago considered to have got safer.

Brazil

The report also recommends avoiding certain areas of Brazil (Image: GETTY)

The amber category recommends visitors show extreme caution through their trip, as result of high levels of crime.

It consists of 13 countries, mainly African, including Togo, Ghana and Tanzania. Malaysia is also included.

Countries in the yellow category have high levels of crime without being alarming, hence visitors are urged to be cautions.

Morocco, Equatorial Guinea and, as Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Bolivia, , the Dominican Republic and Costa Rica, plus Trinidad and Tobago.

Finally, 41 countries in the blue category come with no specific restrictions.

Britain is included, as is the , Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Samoa, plus most European countries with the exception of some of the Balkan states.

Taiwan is the only Asian country included, and no African or Latin nations make the cut.

Commenting on its advice, a Foreign Ministry spokesman said: “It is recalled that at this time no region of the world and no country are safe from possible terrorist acts.”

(Additional reporting by Maria Ortega)