Israel Fails To Get Google To Change ‘Palestine’ Homepage
A Google representative from the company’s global headquarters has discussed the decision to use “Palestine,” not “Palestinian Territories,” across the tech giant’s products. At the Knesset committee meeting Wednesday, the Israelis didn’t get very far in their attempts to change the American’s mind.
Last month, Google changed the way it refers to the territories, and earlier this week, Deputy Foreign Minister Zeev Elkin wrote Google CEO Larry Page urging him to reconsider.
In his letter, Elkin wrote that Google’s move in effect recognizes the existence of a Palestinian state. Such a decision is not only mistaken but could impair the government’s efforts to restart direct talks with the Palestinian Authority.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor offered a slightly different view. Israel “has no position vis-à-vis Google, which is neither a political nor a diplomatic entity with any authority to recognize states,” he told Haaretz.
In late May, Israel’s consul general for the northwestern United States, Andy David, handed Google representatives a letter. The Foreign Ministry says the Google people promised that the company would now update Israel about similar changes, even though it might not consult with it.
This is Israel’s sole diplomatic gain in the battle so far.
Read more at Haaretz.com.
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.
Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.
At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and the protests on college campuses.
Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.