Palestinians condemn Airbnb about-face on delisting Israeli settlements
JERUSALEM - Airbnb's decision not to go ahead with excluding Jewish settlements in the West Bank from its accommodation listings Palestinian condemnation on Wednesday and accusations that it was helping to perpetuate Israeli rule.
Heeding calls from Palestinians who want the West Bank for a future state, Airbnb had said in November it would remove the listings of some 200 settlement homes.
That decision was deplored by Israel and challenged in some U.S. jurisdictions.
Announcing a resolution of lawsuits brought against it, Airbnb said it "will not move forward with implementing the removal of listings in the West Bank from the platform".
Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said in a statement that this "signals the complicity of the company with the systematic denial of our inalienable right to self-determination".
