The federal government has advised Australians not to travel to Lebanon, and any Australians in Lebanon to return home due to a "volatile security situation and the risk of the security situation deteriorating further" in the region.

There are currently 23 countries on Australia’s ‘do not travel’ list - places like North Korea, Russia, Mali, Myanmar and Bangladesh. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade says if you travel to those countries, you’re at a high risk of death, imprisonment, kidnapping or serious injury. But if you wanted to, could the government stop you going there?

In this episode of The Briefing, Bension Siebert is joined by Dr David Bierman from the University of Technology in Sydney, who actually advises the government on travel warnings, to explain what happens if you ignore the government’s advice and visit a country on its ‘do not travel’ list.

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Here's what happens if you ignore the government's travel advice