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American Morning
Travel Agencies Work to Draw American Jews to Israel
Aired July 02, 2001 - 10:33 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: The tourism market in Israel is taking a direct hit.
Our Brian Palmer now takes a look at how travel agents are trying to draw more American Jews to Israel.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRIAN PALMER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Israel has been a cultural and spiritual magnet for Jews around the world since the nation's founding in 1948, both in hard times and not-so-hard times. But these are very hard times. The number of tourists traveling to the Jewish state has dropped dramatically. And after the bombing of a Tel Aviv disco in early June, it's way down -- by at least 30 percent.
LARRY RITTER, PRESIDENT, ISRAEL TOUR CONNECTION: Business is horrible. And in my particular business, we're off about 80 percent. And that's because we deal basically in family travel to Israel. People are willing to go -- adults are willing to go, but they're not willing to take their children.
PALMER: Arie Sommer's job is to get more Americans to travel to Israel -- usually not a hard sell to the thousands of American Jews with strong ties to the nation.
ARIE SOMMER, ISRAEL TOURISM COMMISSIONER: From the time that the crisis in our region started, we show that some people were concerned about going to the country. And they decided to postpone their trips.
PALMER: Two themes frame many of the debates about traveling to Israel: safety...
CYNTHIA STADD, TRAVELER: I had a mother who said, "I'm going to kill myself if anything happens to you. So you'd better not go."
PALMER: ... and solidarity with Israelis.
MARLENE POST, CHAIRMAN, BIRTHRIGHT ISRAEL: Israelis are feeling somewhat abandoned. They want to see tourists. They want to see other people coming to Israel.
PALMER: Israel's president made that clear in a recent speech to American Jewish leaders. MOSHE KATSAV, ISRAEL PRESIDENT: I call you to use your referential leadership toward your communities and to call to all of them in those days to come to Israel to visit and to express your solidarity.
PALMER: Plenty of people have answered the call. Aaron Bernthal left for Israel just days after the Tel Aviv bombing.
AARON BERNTHAL, TRAVELER: This is just normal routine life in Israel. And I didn't think that one terrorist attack should prevent me from really viewing a beautiful country.
POST: I would never, as a mother, never say that anyone shouldn't have the full option to cancel trips or to say they don't want to go. So I think that each trip provider -- each group that provides trips for young people has to make that decision for themselves.
PALMER: Birthright Israel is one of those groups that's keeping its tours running, but with increased security.
Brian Palmer, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
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