Waze is not taking claims that it is responsible for leading two Israeli soldiers into the Palestinian Qalandiya refugee camp sitting down.
In fact, the Google-owned traffic app is hitting back hard and is blaming the soldiers themselves for getting stuck in the Palestinian enclave, where rioters attacked them without mercy.
“[Waze] includes a specific default setting that prevents routes through areas which are marked as dangerous or prohibited for Israelis to drive through,” Waze told Agence France-Presse today.
“In this case, the setting was disabled. In addition, the driver deviated from the suggested route and as a result, entered the prohibited area. There are also red signs on the road in question that prohibit access to Palestinian-controlled territories [for Israelis]. It is the responsibility of every driver to adhere to road and traffic signs and obey local laws.”
The company added, “Waze has and is continuing to work directly with the relevant authorities to decrease such mishaps from occurring, but, unfortunately, there is no ability to prevent them altogether as ultimately some prudence is in the driver’s hands.”
David Steger – Matzav.com Israel
Waze was developed by an Israeli company and sold to Google. When I was in Eretz Yisroel recently, every taxi driver, and most regular drivers, were using the app. It is logical to assume that Google’s statement is true.