CAIRO: The Egyptian Minister of Tourism, Mounir Abdel Nour, said in statements on Monday that he expects the return of tourist activity this year and to reach higher levels than the pre-revolution phase, saying that a large number of tourists avoided visiting Egypt, due to the unrest caused by the Arab Spring. Abdel Nour said at a conference in Dubai that Egypt is seeking to attract 14.5 million tourists this year. Abdel Nour said that the decline in tourist activity, equivalent to one-third less last year, was because of fear of violent protests in the streets. Egypt depends heavily on tourism, which provides jobs and is one of the main sources of foreign currency.