As Obama Visits The West Bank, Palestinians Reach For Their Tech Startup Future

Sitting in Snobar, a cool bar shaded by fir trees in deepest Ramallah, George Khadder is practically thumping the table as he speaks. A Palestinian who has worked in Silicon Valley, he talks passionately about his desire for Palestinian entrepreneurs to control their own destiny. "I came back from Silicon Valley because I believed I could affect change," he tells me. It's a sentiment that has been echoed during President Obama's visit to Israel and the West Bank. This week Obama specifically spoke about programs designed to stimulate the Palestinian technology ecosystem and build bridges with the large and well-developed Israeli tech community. "Over 100 high-tech companies have found a home on the West Bank, which speaks to the talent and entrepreneurial spirit of the Palestinian people," he said. Back in Snobar, you could easily mistake my conversation with a group of tech entrepreneurs to be happening in some hip part of Europe - perhaps a Berlin 'beach' bar by the river Spree. But this is no ordinary party of the world, and these are no run-of-the-mill entrepreneurs shooting the breeze about raising VC or launching a startup.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/brL9ub4tINU/

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