ISRAEL AT WAR
Google Withdraws from Web Summit Participation; Israeli VCs Unite in Joint Conference Boycott
“While the entire world has been loud and clear against these atrocities, Paddy Cosgrave blamed Israel. We view this as a betrayal of our common values,” the VCs wrote in a statement
Following the statements made by Paddy Cosgrave, the CEO of Web Summit, in recent days on social media, the Israeli venture capital ecosystem has released a joint statement announcing a boycott of the biggest technology conference in Europe.
On Friday, Google also announced its decision not to participate in the conference. The company's spokesperson, in response to Calcalist's inquiry, confirmed this and stated, "We won't be taking part in the Web Summit."
“We, members of the Israeli high tech community, have made the decision to cancel sponsorship and will not attend the upcoming Web Summit. We cannot, in good conscience, participate in a conference whose leadership blames Israel for war crimes while Hamas terrorists committed one of the worst terror attacks in modern history,” the VCs' joint statement read.
“While the entire world has been loud and clear against these atrocities, Paddy Cosgrave blamed Israel. We view this as a betrayal of our common values.
“We expect ethical and moral leadership, particularly in our esteemed global tech community, that can distinguish between terrorism and self-defense. Silence in the face of such overt acts of violence suggests a dangerous moral ambivalence.
“Over 200 Israelis are still being held hostage in Gaza, their well-being and whereabouts unknown. Rockets continue to be shot from Gaza to Israel on an hourly basis. Thousands of Israelis were wounded and traumatized.
“We are disappointed that in these tragic times, the Web Summit is unable to stand unequivocally with the Israeli people and our right to live in peace and security.”
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Intel became the latest in an ever-growing list of companies and executives to pull out of Web Summit on Thursday following Cosgrave’s remarks about Israel violating international law and committing war crimes in its war against Hamas. Cosgrave posted a public apology on Tuesday after Israeli tech leaders said they would boycott his conference following a series of tweets in which he criticized Israel, stating among other things that “War crimes are war crimes even when committed by allies, and should be called out for what they are”.
The VCs who signed the letter are:
10D
91 Ventures
Amiti Ventures
Aleph
aMoon
Collider
Cyberstarts
Elron Ventures
Entrée Capital
Glilot Capital Partners
Grove Ventures
Flint Capital
Hetz Ventures
Hyperwise Ventures
Ibex Investors
INcapital Ventures
Innovation Endeavors
ION Crossover Partners
Jibe Ventures
Joule Ventures
Lool Ventures
Merlin Ventures
Meron Capital
O.G. Venture Partners
Pitango VC
Qumra
StageOne Ventures
State of Mind Ventures
Target Global
Team8
TechAviv Founder Partners
Teuza Venture Fund
TLV Partners
TPY Capital
Vertex Ventures
Viola Ventures
Vintage Investment Partners
YL Ventures
