Casino mogul Sheldon Adelson, owner of Singapore's MBS, to be buried in Jerusalem

Billionaire casino magnate Sheldon Adelson had died of cancer in the US. PHOTO: REUTERS

JERUSALEM (AFP) - Billionaire casino magnate Sheldon Adelson, a staunch supporter of United States President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, will be buried in Jerusalem on Friday (Jan 15), a paper controlled by his family said.

Mr Adelson died of cancer in the US on Tuesday and his body arrived in Israel late Thursday, according to the Israel Hayom newspaper, which published a front page photograph of his coffin drapped in Israeli and American flags.

Mr Netanyahu saw the coffin and met Mr Adelson's wife Miriam at the airport, Israel Hayom reported.

The son of a Boston taxi driver, Mr Adelson brought new heights to the gambling industry around the world.

He rose to become one of the richest men on the planet, thanks to his chain of casinos. As at Tuesday, Forbes magazine estimated his net worth at US$35 billion (S$46.4 billion).

Mr Adelson was equally known for his tireless advocacy for Israel and right-wing causes, and for his impassioned opposition to the Palestinian cause.

He caused a furore with many of his remarks, including dismissing the Palestinians as an "invented" people and musing about how the US should drop a nuclear bomb on Israel's arch-enemy, Iran.

Mr Netanyahu called Mr Adelson "an incredible champion of the Jewish people", following his death.

The Adelson family founded Israel Hayom in 2007, and it is now one of the country's most popular papers.

Dr Miriam Adelson, born in in British mandate Palestine, is the paper's publisher.

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