WALK ON WILD SIDE

tours at Wild Frontiers, another British firm, said his company had no plans to bring any visitors this year.

“We’ve noticed a distinct drop in interest, and that’s combined with our own concerns over the decline in security,” he said. “This is the first year in a while that we haven’t brought at least 40 to 50 people.”

Foreign tour operators deny that they cater to thrillseekers.

“We’re not about taking people to dangerous places but rather introducing them to an amazing country,” said Leaderman.

Wild Frontiers’ clients in Afghanistan have ranged from people in their 20s to ones in their 80s, and included a British military history buff and another individual who had first visited the country as a hippie in the 1960s.

“Everyone seems to have their own reason for coming to Afghanistan,” said Leaderman, who acknowledged the trips were usually against the advice of the British Embassy. “It’s not something people take lightly.”

The tragedy of the attack in Herat, Willcox said, was that it would lead to more headlines framing Afghanistan as nothing other than a dangerous place.

“Central Asia is not really on people’s radar, and they usually only know about Afghanistan because of the conflict,” he said. “But that’s just one part. It’s a very interesting and beguiling place to experience.”