Egypt tourism could fully recover by end 2015 - minister

Egypt's tourism industry, battered by three years of political upheaval and street protests, could fully recover by the end of 2015 if current levels of stability persist, the tourism minister said.

But Hisham Zaazou also expressed concern that tourism would take another hit if Islamic State militants, who have seized parts of Iraq and Syria, showed any signs of infiltrating Egypt, the biggest Arab country.

"Of course it represents a threat. No one can deny that," Zaazou told Reuters in an interview late on Sunday.