UPDATE: On Wednesday afternoon, US President Joe Biden announced Israel and Hamas reached a ceasefire and hostage deal, based on a plan Biden presented on May 31, 2024, which was unanimously endorsed by the UN Security Council. The US, Egypt, and Qatar were involved with the diplomacy that led to the agreement.
Adelson’s key role
Miriam Adelson, the owner of Las Vegas Sands Corporation (LVS), was reportedly crucial in urging president-elect Donald Trump to push Israel and Hamas into accepting a ceasefire agreement.
Adelson commanded extraordinary influence over US-Israel relations”
According to the Jerusalem Post on Tuesday, Adelson “commanded extraordinary influence over US-Israel relations,” and allegedly used her close ties with Trump to lobby him to take decisive action over the Israelis captured by Hamas during the October 2023 attack.
In December, Trump’s call on Hamas to “RELEASE THE HOSTAGES NOW” was widely shared via X:
According to Israeli journalist Ben Caspit, the LVS head and billionaire donor was decisive in persuading Trump to issue the bold public warning to the Palestinian captors.
Direct line to president-elect
The reports reinforce Adelson’s sway over the returning president, both on domestic and foreign fronts. During his previous term, Miriam and her husband, the late Sheldon Adelson, played key roles in getting the Trump administration to recognize Israeli sovereignty in the Golan Heights and relocate the US Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
Back on US soil, Adelson donated $100m to Trump’s re-election campaign to match the amount she and her husband donated to the incoming president’s 2016 election campaign.
Adelson persuaded WhatsApp co-founder Jan Koum to donate $5m
In 2024, however, the LVS head went a step further, campaigning other billionaires to donate to Trump’s campaign against Vice President Kamala Harris. According to media reports at the time, Adelson persuaded WhatsApp co-founder Jan Koum to donate $5m.
Meanwhile, in Texas
It remains to be seen what influence, if any, the return of Trump will have on LVS’s bid to legalize gambling in Texas.
The Las Vegas-based casino and resort giant has an interest in Texas after Adelson sold $2bn in LVS stock in late 2023 to buy a controlling stake in the Dallas Mavericks. Co-owner Mark Cuban wants to build a new stadium in Dallas as part of a casino resort.