Sir Richard Branson, the co-founder of multinational venture capital conglomerate the Virgin Group, arrived in Israel on Wednesday after Virgin Atlantic launched its London-Tel Aviv route.
Virgin Holidays, another group subsidiary, simultaneously announced the launch of package vacations to Israel in 2020.
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On its website, Virgin Holidays already offers various packages for those seeking to travel to Israel, including Jerusalem vacations and the "Classic Israel Tour," which includes Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Haifa, the Dead Sea and Bethlehem.
Video: Reuters
Branson is set to speak at a conference hosted by financial daily Calcalist in Tel Aviv on Thursday. The event will take place at the Peres Center for Peace and Innovation.
Speaking with reporters, Branson said he opposed boycotts against the Jewish state as means of forcing a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
"There are definitely big issues that need to be sorted out in this region, and there need to be brave politicians who sort out these issues and say enough is enough," Branson, who kissed the ground after landing in Tel Aviv, said.
"We have invested in both Israel and Palestine. When we start flying our airline to a country, on the back of that, other Virgin companies follow and are involved in lots of different areas. I'm sure we'll be investing much more in the years to come."
