PA official Saeb Erekat (Amir Levy/Flash90 )
Senior PA official accuses Airbnb of complicity in denying self-determination to the Palestinians.
By World Israel News Staff
The Palestinian Authority (PA) has condemned the Airbnb online hospitality service for reversing its decision to prohibit listing Jewish-owned homes in Judea and Samara on its website.
PA senior official Saeb Erekat charged that the decision “signals the complicity of the company with the systematic denial of our inalienable right to self-determination.”
Under pressure from Palestinian and anti-Israel BDS (Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions) activists, Airbnb announced in November that it would remove the listings of some 200 homes located in Israeli communities of Judea and Samaria.
However, lawsuits were then filed against Airbnb in Israel, as well as three U.S. states: California, New York, and Delaware.
An Airbnb delegation led by company vice president Chris Lanahan met with Israel’s Tourism Minister Yariv Levin on Monday, according to the Israel Hayom newspaper.
The company said that following the resolution of lawsuits, it would “not move forward with implementing the removal of listings in the West Bank [Judea and Samaria] from the platform.”
Erekat dismissed an Airbnb announcement that it would not take profits from its business in Judea and Samaria, calling the apparent attempt at compromise “nothing but a shameful attempt at whitewashing their complicity.”
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