Apple removes free ‘Thirdintifada’ from App Store

(JTA) — Apple Inc. removed the Arabic-language "Thirdintifada" application from its App Store following a request from the Israeli government. 

The application was removed late Wednesday, a day after Israel’s minister of public diplomacy and diaspora affairs, Yuli Edelstein, wrote to Apple founder and CEO Steve Jobs making the request.

"We removed this app from the App Store because it violates the developer guidelines by being offensive to large groups of people," an Apple spokesman said Wednesday evening.

The Thirdintifada application, which had been available for free download from the App Store, updates users on anti-Israel protests or allows them to organize their own. It also features anti-Israel articles and photos of terrorists who have attacked Israel or Israelis.

Edelstein, who in his letter to Jobs had called the application "anti-Israel and anti-Zionist," commended the decision in a statement issued Thursday morning.

"This is an additional step in preventing hostile elements, which are frequently tainted by anti-Semitism, from spreading incitement via the ‘new media,’ " his statement said. "By its action, Apple has proven, as Facebook did, that it shares the values that oppose violence, incitement and terrorism."

In March, Edelman appealed to Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg to remove a page called "Third Intifada" that called for a new uprising against Israel. The page subsequently was removed, though copycat pages arose in its place.

Edelstein in his letter to Jobs wrote, "I believe Apple, as a pioneering and progressive company, places the values of liberty, freedom of expression and creativity as a guiding light. Also, as a leader in its area, I am convinced that you are aware of this type of application’s ability to unite many toward an objective that could be disastrous."