Israeli Blames ‘Spoiled’ Jews for Tourism Dip

JERUSALEM —  Israel’s tourism minister Wednesday criticized “spoiled” foreign Jews for shunning Israel because of the Persian Gulf crisis and wrecking what would have been a record holiday year.

In an interview, Gideon Patt said Israel had been on course for a record 1.8 million tourists in 1990 until Iraq seized Kuwait Aug. 2, sending regional tensions soaring and reducing the forecast tourist arrivals by 18%.

Israel’s handing out of gas masks as protection against a feared Iraqi chemical attack scared Jewish tourists, mainly from the United States, who make up 35% of visitors to the Holy Land, he said.

He reported that Jewish leaders had canceled conventions of thousands of their constituents, whom he described as “spoiled,” and that only through a special “solidarity” effort was Israel able to persuade about 8,000 Jews to visit in December.

In contrast, he said, hardly any non-Jewish groups canceled their trips, although some groups came with fewer members than planned.