DaysofPal- A coalition of international legal and advocacy organizations has cautioned that Microsoft’s provision of services to the Israeli occupation during the Gaza genocide could expose the company to criminal and civil liability in U.S. and European courts, as well as before international bodies.
In a letter sent to Microsoft, organizations including the Abolitionist Law Center, Avaaz Foundation, European Legal Support Center, SOMO, Center for Constitutional Rights, Ekō, and GLAN accused the tech giant of aiding and facilitating Israeli atrocity crimes and human rights violations against Palestinians.
They argued that Microsoft’s services, including cloud computing, artificial intelligence, and data processing, provided to the Israeli military, potentially make the company liable for a wide range of offenses.
The letter stated there is “a reasonable and credible basis to believe” that Microsoft played a direct role in the Israeli commission of grave crimes, such as genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity in Gaza. It also highlighted that Microsoft’s technology supports Israel’s extensive and illegal Israeli surveillance of the Palestinian population.
The groups added that Israeli sources confirmed the military’s reliance on Microsoft products to identify targets and conduct espionage against Palestinians. They urged Microsoft to halt the use of its services for unlawful purposes and take steps to ensure accountability and compensation for those harmed.
Since October 7, 2023, the Israeli genocidal war in Gaza has killed over 70,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children.
Although a ceasefire took effect on October 10, 2025, the Israeli occupation has reportedly violated it with near-daily attacks.
The organizations noted that Microsoft became a major provider of cloud services to the Israeli military after the conflict began.
By April 2024, the military’s use of Microsoft cloud storage had increased by over 155% compared to pre-conflict levels. Investigations also found that Unit 8200, the Israeli cyber-spying division, stored large volumes of intercepted Palestinian phone calls on Microsoft Azure servers, enabling extensive surveillance in Gaza and the West Bank.
By July 2025, about 11,500 terabytes (roughly 200 million hours of audio) were stored mainly in Microsoft data centers in the Netherlands, with additional data in Ireland.
Following this, Microsoft was reportedly forced to block Israeli access to certain cloud and AI services used for mass surveillance and espionage. GLAN director Gearóid Ó Cuinn emphasized that European law holds companies accountable if their systems materially facilitate atrocity crimes or illegal surveillance.
Additionally, the Irish Council for Civil Liberties filed a complaint alleging Microsoft violated EU data protection laws by helping the Israeli occupation erase evidence of surveillance from European data centers.
The complaint stated that Microsoft’s servers are part of a system that enables ongoing violations of international criminal, humanitarian, and human rights law against millions of Palestinians.
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