Complaints by Jewish settlers angry at Facebook for listing them as residents of “Palestine” prompted the popular social networking Web site to allow users to switch themselves back to Israel.

Facebook users living in Maale Adumim, Ariel and other large Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank protested when the site automatically listed their hometowns as being in “Palestine”. A group of settlers accused the California-based company of having a political agenda.

“I was surprised and disappointed to find that my hometown of Ariel is listed in Facebook as being part of a country called ‘Palestine,’” wrote Ari Zimmerman in a posting on Facebook. “I am a citizen of Israel, as are all of the other residents of Ariel. We do not live in ‘Palestine’, nor does anyone else.”

Brandee Barker, Facebook’s director of communications, said users living in major settlement blocs can now choose between being listed as residents of Israel or Palestine.