Supporters hope for up to four casinos
A plan to bring legal casinos to the southern resort city of Eilat on the Red Sea in Israel has sparked vocal opposition from religious quarters. According to Intergamelonline.com, the proposal to bring up to four Las-Vegas style casinos has met with strong resistance from religious parties Bayit Yehudi, United Torah Judaism and Shas.
According to Haaretz, a study completed in December found that casinos would stem the tide of Israelis gambling overseas or offshore, and keep those tax revenues at home. Casinos would also serve to bring more local and international tourists to the community. The Tourism Ministry estimates that casinos could bring in revenues of $336 million per year, attract an additional 284,000 tourists, and lead to the creation of 11,000 new direct and indirect jobs.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has come out in support of the plan, saying it would “save Eilat from economic collapse.” But opposition from religious groups could prove formidable. Bayit Yehudi chairman and Education Minister Naftali Bennett called the plan “forbidden, morally and practically.”
“Casinos contradict the values of our state, serve the strong and weaken the weak and practically because we will all need to fund the damage and injury to the body and soul that will come along with a casino,” said Bennett. “Israel isn’t Vegas and it won’t be. We will oppose it.”
