The Israeli coastal city of Eilat is struggling to recover from the economic blow caused by the war on Gaza, according to data published by the credit card payment system company in Israel, Shifa, which monitors credit card payments.
This city was transformed from a tourist resort into a haven for those displaced from the attacks of the Palestinian resistance beginning with the Al-Aqsa Flood operation.
Lower payments
Despite the improvement in the level of consumer spending in the resort overlooking the Red Sea, Shafa data shows that in the week from December 17 to 23 last, credit card payments were 30% lower than they were in the corresponding week of 2022.
According to the Israeli economic newspaper “Globes”, the mayor of Eilat, Eli Lankri, asked the Ministry of Finance to develop a special compensation plan for the city, and this issue was discussed last week by the Finance Committee in the Knesset.
During the Knesset discussions, Lancry presented data showing that unemployment in Eilat, located in the far south of Israel, jumped from 3.4% to 14% since the beginning of the war, and that credit card data showed that it was the city most affected.
He claims the Ministry of Finance rejected his request for aid to the city, saying among other things that it “claims that the city is no different from the rest of the country.”
Adequate compensation
However, the Finance Ministry insists that the checks related to Eilat are complicated by its exemption from value-added tax, and that from the checks conducted on the companies, it was found that there is no difference between the performance of companies in Eilat and companies in the rest of Israel, and therefore the general compensation plan meets the city’s needs. .
A meeting has been arranged, later this week, between the Mayor of Eilat and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, regarding whether this city will receive additional aid.
The newspaper quoted the head of the Institute of Tax Consultants in Israel, Yaron Gendi, as saying that Eilat suffers the greatest challenges among Israeli cities, with the exception of the border settlements in the north and south, but the situation may only improve when tourism returns to the city.
