Guinness World Records Pauses New Applications From Israel And Palestinian Territories After 2023 Violence

Guinness World Records Pauses New Applications From Israel And The Palestinian Territories

Guinness World Records confirmed it has stopped accepting new record submissions that list Israel or the Palestinian territories as the attempt location following the October 7, 2023 Hamas attacks and the subsequent escalation of violence in the region. The organisation says the temporary pause, introduced in 2023, is reviewed monthly and includes a narrow exception for attempts conducted in cooperation with UN humanitarian relief agencies.

The pause came to public attention after Israeli charity Matnat Chaim sought to register an event in Jerusalem in which 2,000 people would donate a kidney each — an effort organisers described as potentially the largest coordinated donation of its kind. Matnat Chaim was told Guinness would not process record applications originating from Israel or areas under Palestinian control.

'Our priority is to see the current peace plan lead to a lasting peace for the sake of everyone impacted in Israel, the Palestinian territories, the wider region and around the world,' a Guinness World Records spokesman said, adding that the pause was introduced as an appropriate response amid the outbreak and escalation of violence.

Israeli officials and foreign diplomats sharply criticised the decision. Israel's foreign minister, Gideon Sa'ar, said organisers of the kidney-donation event were being denied recognition 'simply because they are from Israel' and demanded the decision be reversed. Mike Huckabee, US ambassador to Israel, called the move an example of 'hate and bigotry.' Matnat Chaim's president, Rachel Heber, told local media the refusal was 'unacceptable.'

Guinness emphasised it continues to monitor the situation and will consider ceasefire progress and a more stable environment when reviewing the policy. The organisation also said it has already ceased accepting applications from Russia since February 2022, following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and has ended business activities there.

Despite the pause on new submissions, Guinness World Records' online database continues to list past achievements from both Israel and the Palestinian territories, including Israel's 322g strawberry and a four-hour, 25-minute wheelchair tennis match, and Palestinian records such as 2,068 people simultaneously dribbling a football and a 6,552-metre chain of scarves.

What This Means: The pause affects new record attempts that name Israel or the Palestinian territories as the location, with humanitarian exceptions. Existing verified records remain listed while Guinness reviews the policy monthly and ties any change to improvements in regional security and stability.