Israel yet to follow in UK’s footsteps in lifting gambling ban | Innovation
Gambling 370.
(photo credit: Wikimedia Commons / CC)
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The topic of gambling and the legality of gambling in Israel has always been a gray area. If you were to look at the Israeli law books, the section that deals with gambling, particularly the ban on gambling, lies in the Israeli Penal Law 5737 of 1977. The text of Penal Law 5737, however, did not address online gambling in any manner or form, which was cause for a lot of confusion and speculation. In 2005, the Israeli Attorney General took a stern stance against online gambling when he issued orders that not only mandated the closure of online gambling operators with servers based in Israel, but also penalized credit card companies that processed transactions for such online casino and gambling site operators.
The current situation is, unfortunately, not any more straightforward. At this time, attorneys interpret the law books as severely cracking down on casino gambling with some serious consequences for offenders, while in contradiction allowing sports betting and lottery as being perfectly legal.
When it comes to land-based casinos in Israel, they are much like unicorns – there aren’t any at all! However, where there is demand, there will be supply. The ban has resulted in several undercover casinos and gambling tables that operate behind closed doors. Not only are these unregulated and potentially frivolous, but such platforms can be downright dangerous. The gambling ban in Israel has come under some serious criticism of late for precisely such reasons. Not only will the legalization of casino gambling and gambling games like poker allow for safe, fair and regulated casinos, but it is also a great boost to the economy as it is heavily taxable. In fact, these are exactly the reasons why the ban was lifted in Britain.
Despite the fact that Israel adopted the legal framework of Britain, including the ban on gambling, Israeli gambling laws do not seem to be as dynamic and evolving as its English counter – part. The Israeli laws revolving around gambling and the ban on casinos and games like poker are archaic in this day and age to say the least.
Will Israel follow in the footsteps of Britain, from whom they adopted the gambling ban, and lift the ban? Only time will tell, but at this point, they seem to be in no hurry to do so.
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