Egyptian tourism minister Hisham Zazou has resigned his post as the political crisis in the country continues to worsen. Zazou was among a group of five ministers who submitted what he called “justified” resignations to prime minister Hisham Kandil.

As many as 19 tourists have been killed in a hot air balloon crash near the southern Egyptian city of Luxor. British, French and Japanese nationals are all believed to have been killed in the incident, with two survivors rescued.

Egyptian minister of tourism Hisham Zazou has denied there will be any negative impact on tourism in the country following a recent attack on the Egyptian-Gaza border. Military helicopters fired missiles on suspected Islamist militants in the northern Sinai Peninsula last night, reportedly killing 20 people in Touma village.

Holidaymakers are once again looking at Egypt as a potential holiday destination after its recent troubles. Following Egypt’s move towards democracy, the easyJet Holidays website is reporting a strong increase in sales with traffic continuing to bounce back to pre-revolution interest levels.

British holidaymakers travelling to Egypt have been urged to exercise caution amid of the possibility of mass demonstrations across parts of the destination ahead of the second round of presidential elections.

“What drives tourism is the perception the traveler has of a destination. Fair reporting of both the negative and the positive will play a vital role in the recovery of Egyptian tourism,” said Egypt’s Tourism Minister, Mounir Fakhry Abdel-Nour, as he opened the conference.