Israel Matzav

The war against the 'settlements' comes to TripAdvisor

Sorry for not posting for a couple of days - I've been swamped with work.

The war against the 'settlements' has come to AirBnB and to TripAdvisor. The Washington Post's William Booth reports that the 'Palestinians' are protesting the offering of rooms in 'settlements' on the popular Bed and Breakfast site, and that the result has been a rush by 'settlers' to list more homes (Hat Tip: Memeorandum).

The Airbnb host said that once his guests see the view, “nobody wants to talk politics.” Igal Canaan, a Jewish settler, threw open the doors of his designer apartment to reveal a jaw-dropping panorama of blue sky and Judean wilderness.

“In the morning, you can see shepherds with their flocks,” said Canaan, pointing out a distant village often associated with the birth of the prophet Jeremiah. “The view is totally biblical.”

All this, plus swimming pool, kitchenette, fast WiFi and maybe a “welcome” bottle of wine, just 20 minutes from Jerusalem, for about $80 per night.

The guest reviews call it awesome — but according to the Palestinians, it is also very wrong.

That's about what Mrs. Carl and I pay for the zimmer we occasionally rent in the Galilee (which includes a jacuzzi but not a swimming pool) and it's a heck of a lot closer to our Jerusalem home. Hmmm. 

A few weeks ago, Saeb Erekat, secretary general of the Palestine Liberation Organization, sent a terse letter to Airbnb chief executive Brian Chesky in San Francisco, warning that his company was “effectively promoting the illegal Israeli colonization of occupied land.”

Airbnb said in a statement to the Associated Press that it “follows law and regulations where it can do business.”

Indeed they do. And the government of Israel certainly has no problem with 'settlers' revenants renting out their homes. And perhaps Saeb - the 'Palestinians' perennial chief negotiator bottle washer should have kept his mouth shut.

So what did some Jewish settlers with an extra bedroom do?

“Ever since the Palestinians started complaining, our people took this as a challenge and have been rushing to Airbnb to list their properties,” said Miri Maoz-Ovadia, a spokeswoman for the Binyamin Regional Council.

BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Read the whole thing. 

Labels: BDS, Israeli tourism, Judea and Samaria, Saeb Erekat

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 6:53 PM