Microsoft has suspended certain cloud and artificial intelligence services used by an Isra-eli military unit after an internal review supported reports that its technology was being misused for mass surveillance of Pales-tinians.
The move follows a joint investigation by the Guardian, +972 Magazine, and Local Call, which revealed that Israel’s military agency had been storing vast recordings of Palestinian phone calls on Microsoft’s Azure cloud servers. The findings raised global concerns about privacy violations and human rights.
Microsoft President Brad Smith said the company does not allow its technology to be used for mass civilian surveillance. He confirmed that preliminary evidence showed Israeli Ministry of Defense subscriptions involved Azure storage in the Netherlands and AI tools, consistent with the media reports.
While Microsoft has now disabled these services, it will continue providing cybersecurity support to Israel and other Middle Eastern nations. The Israeli Ministry of Defense declined to comment on the suspension.
Palestinian rights advocates, including the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) and the worker-led campaign group “No Azure for Apartheid,” welcomed the decision, calling it a hard-earned victory for employees and activists who pushed the tech giant to act.
Microsoft has faced mounting protests from staff and human rights groups over its ties to Israel, especially as the humanitarian crisis in Gaza has deepened. Some workers were fired after staging demonstrations, including a sit-in at Smith’s office.
Israel’s military previously insisted that its cooperation with firms like Microsoft operated under “legally supervised agreements.” However, the revelations come amid international outrage over Israel’s two-year offensive in Gaza, which has killed tens of thousands and displaced nearly the entire population an assault that U.N. experts and rights groups have described as genocidal.
