VZCZCXRO2150
OO RUEHROV
DE RUEHJM #0718 1101454
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 201454Z APR 07
FM AMCONSUL JERUSALEM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 7293
INFO RUEHXK/ARAB ISRAELI COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS PRIORITY

UNCLAS JERUSALEM 000718 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
NEA FOR FRONT OFFICE; NEA/IPA FOR 
WILLIAMS/SHAMPAINE/BELGRADE; NSC FOR ABRAMS/DORAN/WATERS; 
TREASURY FOR NUGENT/HIRSON 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ECON EIND PREL KWBG
SUBJECT: EASTER BRINGS FEW PALESTINIAN PILGRIMS TO 
JERUSALEM BUT BUOYS ARAB HOTELS 
 
REF: A) TEL AVIV 913 B) 2005 JERUSALEM 4022 
 
¶1.  (SBU) Summary:  Pilgrims crowded Jerusalem's Old City for 
Easter in 2007, with approximately 85 percent coming from 
abroad, and the rest from within Israel.  Despite GOI 
assurances that more generous access would be provided to 
Palestinian pilgrims for the holiday, very few Palestinian 
Christians from the West Bank were able to cross into 
Jerusalem.  East Jerusalem hotels, traditionally dependent on 
Christian pilgrims for business, reached 100 percent 
occupancy during Holy Week.  For the year (2006), the average 
occupancy rate among East Jerusalem hotels was 36 percent, up 
from 10 percent in 2001-2003 and 21 percent in 2005.  End 
Summary. 
 
More Pilgrims Arriving, 
But Access Problems Remain 
-------------------------- 
 
¶2.  (SBU) Pilgrims crowded Jerusalem's Old City for Easter in 
¶2007.  Approximately 85 percent of pilgrims came from abroad, 
primarily from Europe and Egypt, and another 15 percent came 
from within Israel. 
 
¶3.  (SBU) Despite GOI assurances that access to Jerusalem 
would be provided to Palestinian pilgrims for the holiday 
season (ref A), Arab hotel owners reported few West Bank 
Christians among their customers.  A group of Palestinian 
Christian NGOs issued a statement on March 29, complaining of 
lack of access to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.  Local 
papers reported that President Abbas met with the heads of 
the Christian churches, including the Greek Orthodox 
Patriarch, Latin Patriarch, the local head of the Anglican 
Church, and other local Christian religious leaders, in 
Bethlehem on April 10, to mark Easter.  He criticized Israel 
for "preventing the believers from reaching the holy sites." 
Major crossing points were closed throughout the Jewish 
holiday of Passover, which coincided with the Christian Holy 
Week.  OCHA's weekly report for April 4-10 noted that only 
the Gilo/Rachel's Tomb checkpoint was open for Christians 
holding special permits. 
 
Modest Improvements in East Jerusalem 
Hotels' Occupancy Rates 
------------------------------------- 
 
¶4.  (SBU) According to the Arab Hotels Association (AHA), 
occupancy rates in Arab-owned East Jerusalem hotels reached 
nearly 100 percent for the Holy Week, a pattern also seen in 
¶2006.  Raed Saadeh, owner of the Jerusalem Hotel and 
President of the AHA, said that improved occupancy rates this 
year were partially due to the overflow from Israeli hotels 
during Passover. 
 
¶5.  (SBU) Saadeh nervously welcomed the improvements, as East 
Jerusalem's hotel industry has undergone painful adjustments 
since 2000 (ref B).  Saadeh noted that, of the 37 East 
Jerusalem hotels operating in 2000, 22 remain open, eight 
have closed completely, and seven more are partially closed 
or converted to other purposes.  The cyclical nature of 
demand has led some East Jerusalem hotels, such as the Mount 
Scopus Hotel, to open only for the spring holiday season. 
Only seven or eight of the remaining hotels, such as the 
Ambassador and the American Colony, enjoy robust business. 
 
¶6.  (SBU) AHA data suggest the industry may be beginning a 
modest recovery.  The average occupancy rate among Arab-owned 
East Jerusalem hotels was 36 percent in 2006, an increase 
from 10 percent in 2001-2003 and 21 percent in 2005, and 
approaching the rates of the mid-1990s. 
 
¶7.  (SBU) Despite the recent improvements, Saadeh said that 
East Jerusalem hotels remain vulnerable to changes in 
economic conditions.   East Jerusalem hotels generally target 
pilgrims and do not have the facilities necessary to widen 
their appeal to other market segments.  The hotels face stiff 
competition for pilgrims' business from religious 
guesthouses, as well as Israeli hotels in West and East 
Jerusalem.  Furthermore, costs have increased as West Bank 
labor has been cut off and licensing requirements and 
inspections have forced the payment of costly fees. 
WALLES