Apple says it will stop a Palestinian flag emoji from being suggested to some iPhone users when they type “Jerusalem” in messages.
The tech titan blamed a software bug for the prompt, which sparked accusations Apple was showing anti-Israel bias amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza. Apple told AFP that the predictive emoji suggestion in the iPhone keyboard was not intentional and would be fixed in the next update to its mobile operating system.
Yesterday it was reported by AppleInsider that Apple’s predictive text system has prompted claims of antisemitism against the tech giant, by serving the Palestinian flag after users type in Jerusalem. The article says that, for some users of iOS 17.4.1, typing in Jerusalem brings up the Palestinian flag as an optional emoji to add in iMessage. AppleInsider says it was able to confirm the flag appears, it also doesn’t appear for all users. For example, while it appears when using iOS under UK English dictionaries, it doesn’t appear when used under US English.
Article provided with permission from AppleWorld.Today