The tourism industry has seen a slowdown in the number of tourist reservations for flights to Israel since Hamas' victory in the Palestinian parliamentary elections, El-Al Chairman Izzy Borovich said Wednesday.
Borovich, who spoke during the IMTM Tourism Exhibition in Tel Aviv, added that "an airline's policy should be examined at periods of crisis, and since Hamas' rise to power we have seen signs of a slowdown in reservations."
Incoming Tourism
The British are coming! / Leslie Bunder
Israel is once again proving a popular destination for British tourists with record numbers traveling there. In 2005, 157,600 Brits went to Israel for a holiday, up by seven percent on the previous year.
According to Shmuel Marom, chairman of the Incoming Tour Operators Association, there has been a decline in reservations in the past few days. He added that he hopes the incoming tourism to Israel during the holiday of Passover would not be affected.
"Hamas' rise to power and the military operations in the territories have caused discomfort among tourists abroad. We have not seen any cancellations yet, but there is a temporary halt in future reservations," he said.
Aviation agreement with EU
Tourism Ministry Director-General Eli Cohen said at the conference that "Israel should prepare to sign a comprehensive aviation agreement with the European Union, in order to maintain and upgrade the status of Israeli airlines in the European market. The existing airline agreements between Israel and European countries are archaic and should be cancelled immediately."
He added that an agreement between Israel and the EU must be signed in the coming year due to high demand in the market and the high airplane occupancy rates, and in light of the expected rise in incoming tourism to Israel.
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