Google appears to have officially recognised Palestine as a separate country.
In a small change to its website, the search engine changed the Araic title of Google.ps from "Palestinian Territories" to just "Palestine".
As noted by Foreign Policy the decision comes about six months after a vote by the United Nations General Assembly to recognise Palestine as a non-member state - a decision opposed by Israel and the United States.
The decision could be interpreted as a victory for supporters of Palestine as a separate state.
But on Google Maps, the complex geopolitics of the region is left deliberately vague. While Israel is clearly listed, the two disputed regions - the West Bank and Gaza - are cut away with a dotted line, and labelled simply with those regional names.
Google has not commented on the change so far. However it could have implications outside of the web. A recent story from Nicaragua claimed that an invasion of a disputed area on the country's border was justified by those behind it