Guatemala's FM: Adelson flew officials to Israel for embassy relocation

Sandra Jovel says casino magnate provided delegation with plane to attend last week’s ceremony

GUATEMALA CITY — United States casino magnate Sheldon Adelson provided Guatemala’s official delegation a Boeing 767 to travel to Israel for the relocation of its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, a Guatemalan government official said Friday.

Guatemalan foreign minister Sandra Jovel said Adelson provided the plane last week to carry government officials and guests, including religious leaders.

Jovel made the comments on radio show ConCriterio, ending days of speculation in Guatemala about who paid for the trip.

Manfredo Marroquin, director of civil society organization Citizen Action, said President Jimmy Morales’s administration violated Guatemalan law, which forbids accepting such gifts.

Guatemala’s human rights prosecutor, Jordan Rodas, also said the arrangement with Adelson was concerning.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (3rd-L) Guatemala President Jimmy Morales (C) and Guatemalan Foreign Minister Sandra Jovel (2R) at the official opening of the Guatemalan embassy in Jerusalem on May 16, 2018. (Marc Israel Sellem/Pool/Flash90)

“You don’t know if what he’s doing is laying the groundwork for personal interests,” Rodas said.

Jovel emphasized that Adelson did not have business interests in Guatemala.

Morales’s decision to move Guatemala’s embassy just two days after the US did the same was seen by many as an attempt to curry favor with US President Donald Trump.

Morales has been battling aggressive prosecutors looking to investigate corruption allegations swirling around him. Local prosecutors are supported by a United Nations anti-corruption commission that is funded in part by the US.