Israeli officials have accused Google of pushing “peace further away” after the web giant altered the name of its homepage in the disputed lands to “Palestine”.
HumanIPO reported yesterday (Monday) Google had changed the name of its landing page from “Palestinian Territories” because it was “following the lead of the United Nations”, which had granted it non-member observer state status in November.
But Israel’s deputy foreign minister Zeev Elkin told Army Radio: “I think that the Google decision from the last few days is very, very problematic.
“When a company like Google comes along and supports this line, it actually pushes peace further away, pushes away negotiations, and creates among the Palestinian leadership the illusion that in this manner they can achieve the result.
“Without direct negotiation with us, nothing will happen.”
Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas said through a spokesman to news agency WAFA that the Google move was a “victory for Palestine and a step toward its liberation”.
