The Israeli-American Council has established an office in Las Vegas as part of a drive to expand from its Los Angeles base to U.S. cities with major concentrations of Israeli expatriates.

Miriam Adelson, born in Haifa and the wife of billionaire casino owner Sheldon Adelson, is chair of the new IAC Las Vegas regional council, established last week.

Inauguration of the Las Vegas office comes on the heels of similar openings in Miami and Boston.

“The Israeli-American Council is changing the landscape of the Jewish community in America … through the full spectrum of educational, cultural, traditional and social programming,” Miriam Adelson said of the inauguration. “We are always thinking of strengthening the Jewish and Israeli identity of future generations and their endless support for the State of Israel.”

IAC’s threefold mission is to support Israel, strengthen Jewish identity among young Israeli Americans and enhance communication between them and the more established Jewish American community.

An estimated 10,000 Israeli expatriates live in Nevada, primarily in the Las Vegas area.

The IAC was founded in Los Angeles in 2007 by a group of Israeli American businessmen as the Israeli Leadership Club. Last year it changed its name.

Estimates of the number of Israelis and their children in the United States vary widely, from 500,000 to the IAC’s figure of 800,000. — jta