How about a one-year old article on "gambling in Israel"?
Jetset Gaming
ISRAEL -- Politically Correct?
by Stuart Mendelson
In the Middle East, politics determines everything -- including where the casinos are located
and who may go to them.
This leads to sometimes absurd situations -- such as Israelis being the biggest customers at a
Palestinian casino and Palestinians not being allowed into the place.
Israelis and Arabs are both enthusiastic gamblers. However, each has its religious fanatics who
are vehemently anti-gambling.
In Israel, the ultra-Orthodox have their own political parties -- with enough weight to
determine who will form the next government. One of the prices they demand is an absolute ban
on casino gambling.
There is no democracy across the line in the Palestinian Autonomous Area, but the
fundamentalist Hamas movement has enough influence to make certain that gambling -- which
it sees as a violation of Islamic law -- is forbidden to Palestinians.
The result was a very "politically correct" answer. The Palestinian Authority built a modern
casino in the ancient city of Jericho but refuses to allow Palestinians to gamble there.
Who, then, is the casino's clientele? Mostly Israelis, who enjoy the idea of having a casino less
than an hour's drive from Tel Aviv or Jerusalem. (A similar situation exists in Taba, Egypt,
which borders the Israeli city of Eilat.)
The Jericho Casino opened in September 1998, and from the first day it has been innundated by
Israeli players. Friday nights and Jewish holidays find it especially jammed. The absurdity of the
whole situation was highlighted on the Jewish holy day of Rosh HaShanah, shortly after the
casino opened. The Palestinians, in respect of the day, closed the casino. They were astounded
to find a large, angry, crowd of Israelis who had driven down to play and were furious because
the doors were locked!
While the Jericho casino (its official name is "Oasis") is owned and operated by Casinos
Austria, and generally follows its operating policy, an exception was made for the dress code.
As very informal attire is de rigeur in both Israel and the Arab nations, patrons are allowed in
without a tie or jacket and jeans are perfectly acceptable.
Despite having 220 slot machines and 35 tables (including blackjack, poker, roulette, and
baccarat) -- and an estimated capacity of 1500 people -- the Oasis Casino is often full on
weekends, so a weekday visit is preferable.
The Taba Casino, located in the Hilton Hotel and operated by it, also allows informal dress. It is,
however, much smaller than Jericho with 46 slots and 27 tables (blackjack, roulette, and
Caribbean stud).
The Hilton is considered to be on the expensive side, but very good -- and very inexpensive --
lodgings can be found in a number of Red Sea resorts in Sinai. If you prefer staying on the Israeli
side of the border, hotel costs will be higher but you will have the advantage of being in the
resort city of Eilat.
While there are plans for the Oasis Casino to be the centerpiece of a multi-million dollar resort
complex, that is still very much in the future. Given the limited resources of Jericho itself, few
people actually stay in the area. Instead, they drive down from Tel Aviv or Jerusalem (special
busses are available and inexpensive).
Jerusalem, of course, has one special advantage. With its plethora of synagogues, churches,
and mosques, you will find no problem in locating a place to pray before trying your luck at the
casino. Too bad that Jericho doesn't offer craps -- if it did, you could indeed be a "Holy Roller"!
NOTE: The Oasis Casino discussed in the above story was closed on Oct. 30 for an "indefinite
period" as a result of the fighting on the West Bank.
Officials of the Jericho casino said that since the problems began a month earlier, there have
been only about 100 visitors per day. Things reached the breaking point the day before the
closing when Palestinian gunmen used the casino's roof and one of its rooms to fire at Israelis.
The Israeli Army, in turn, added the casino to its list of approved targets.
The opinions expressed are solely those of the author.
Copyright Stuart Mendelson 2000 |
