The Web Summit will appoint a new CEO as soon as possible, and the event, which is due to start on November 13 in Lisbon, will go ahead as planned, the organisers said in a statement. “Unfortunately, my personal comments have become a distraction from the event,” said Paddy Cosgrave, quoted in the text.
“I again sincerely apologise for any hurt I have caused,” he added. On 13 October, Paddy Cosgrave wrote a post on the social network X (formerly Twitter) that sparked a lot of criticism.
“I am impressed by the rhetoric and actions of so many Western leaders and governments, with the particular exception of the government of Ireland. For the first time, they are doing the right thing. War crimes are war crimes even when committed by allies, and they must be denounced for what they are,” Paddy Cosgrave said at the time, alluding to the conflict between Israel and Hamas.
After the wave of criticism, Paddy Cosgrave apologised, which didn’t stop several companies from cancelling their participation in the Web Summit. The technology group Amazon today joined Meta, Google, Intel, Siemens and Israeli investors who had previously announced that they would not be taking part in the event.
On 7 October, the Islamist group Hamas launched an attack on Israel that left around 1,400 people dead. In response, Israel has been bombing various Hamas infrastructures in the Gaza Strip and has imposed a siege on the territory, cutting off water, fuel and electricity supplies.
The conflict has already caused the deaths of at least 4,385 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, according to figures released by the Gaza health authorities.
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