Amman, Nov 17 (IANS): Jordan's tourism revenue for the first 10 months of this year reached 6.1 billion US dollars, down 4.4 per cent from the same period last year, the state-owned Al Mamlaka TV reported Sunday.

This decline is attributed to a 6.6-per cent drop in the number of tourists, according to official figures.

"The main reason for the decline in tourism is the cancellation of many flights by European airlines to Jordan due to the war in Gaza and Lebanon," Ilham Saeed, an economic news editor and analyst, told Xinhua news agency.

The regional conditions forced airlines to cancel flights, leading to significant cancellations by tourist groups from Europe, he said.

"It is essential to diversify tourism markets and attract tourists from other countries such as China and major East Asian markets as an alternative," Saeed said, adding that Jordan is safe and stable and the country needs to reach out to new markets.