I don't think the "l" is totally omitted but it modifies the sound of the e. The same way "ing" in English is a nasal en, for some "el" becomes a gutural mix of e and o. I've heard that from regional accents in Spain and from areas in América where a native language has too many vocal sounds.
I've heard "el" pronounced in a similar way to English "owl", but with more of an "e" sound and an el almost absorbed by the double-u. Think about Portuguese: "el" is "o".
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