Microsoft Halts Cloud Services To Israeli Military Over Mass Surveillance Of Palestinians
Microsoft has become the first major US tech company to restrict the Israeli military’s access amid growing public pressure to stop the War in Gaza. Reportedly, Microsoft has revoked cloud services from Israel’s Unit 8200 following the discovery that Microsoft Azure cloud computing technology was used by the Israeli army to store millions of Palestinians’ intercepted phone calls and data.
The Vice Chair and President of Microsoft, Brad Smith, said that the discontinuation of services was based on an investigation by The Guardian newspaper regarding alleged activities of an Israeli military unit.
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The decision is hailed as a major victory, but Microsoft still provides cyber ‘security’ services to Israel and remains a key BDS target.
Notably, Microsoft has been condemned by human rights activists for its complicity in the Gaza Genocide by supporting Israel through data services and technology. Microsoft has been alleged to temporarily block the emails containing words that include ‘Palestine’ or ‘Gaza’.
Moreover, Microsoft, on Thursday (August 28), dismissed four employees for protesting against the company’s ties with Israel, which has been waging war against Gaza since October 2023. Among the four, two were fired earlier for participating in a sit-in this week at the office of the company’s president.
Meanwhile, the US President, during the sidelines of the UNGA Summit, has conducted talks with Arab and Muslim countries about blocking Israel’s annexation of the West Bank and the Gaza Peace Plan. Donald Trump has assured the Muslim countries of stop further Israeli action in Palestine.
He retired his stance while addressing the media in the Oval Office, where he said that, irrespective of Netanyahu and his talks, he will not allow Israel to annex the West Bank.
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