Aqaba’s Tourist Expansion Leaves Sour Taste in Israel

Plans by Israeli airliner Arkia to start flying to the Jordanian Red Sea resort town of Aqaba have left the mayor of neighboring Eilat fuming. Meir Yitzhak HaLevy, the mayor of the Israeli Red Sea resort town of Eilat, has threatened to take action against Arkia should the carrier follow through with plans to setup regular flights to Aqaba. “I see fit to bring to your attention the content of this meeting, in the hope that Arkia’s management will consider its steps and continue to operate for the good of the development and prosperity of Eilat,” HaLevy wrote in a letter to Arkia published in the Israeli daily Globes. HaLevy claims his remarks were taken out of context. “When the flights start we will see if we will lose tourists and then we will see what to do” he told The Media Line. “I’m very much in favor of boosting tourism in Aqaba and Taba [Egypt]. It would be a great solution to the geopolitical political problems, but I want Eilat to be in a leading position.” “Eilat is very important to Arkia, its our heart, its our best location and we fly there all year around,” Arkia CEO Gadi Tepper told The Media Line. “We don’t want to fight with Eilat but we feel uncomfortable about Arkia being taken for granted by some hoteliers in Eilat.”
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