The International Skyline Human Rights Organization accused the American company Microsoft of being involved in providing technical support to the Israeli army and assisting it in committing genocide against civilians in the Gaza Strip.
This support was achieved by providing cloud services and advanced artificial intelligence technologies that contributed to targeting and surveillance operations.
Human rights and media reports revealed that since the beginning of the ongoing war on Gaza in October 2023, Microsoft has provided direct technical support to the Israeli army worth at least $10 million via its Azure cloud platform, under contracts worth millions of dollars.
According to reports, Microsoft’s support includes providing data management services, developing targeting systems, enhancing surveillance technologies, and providing advanced artificial intelligence tools, most notably the “Lavender” system, which relies on artificial intelligence to identify bombing targets. It has been accused of being used to target civilians and kill thousands in Gaza.
Reports also accused the company of providing biometric surveillance technology to track Palestinians, at a time when the death toll has exceeded 50,600, including more than 18,000 children, according to the Ministry of Health in Gaza.
Skyline emphasized that Microsoft’s continued provision of this support contravenes the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, calling on the company to transparently disclose the nature of its relationship with the enemy and end all forms of cooperation related to military activities that violate international law and human rights.
It called for an international investigation to hold the company accountable for its role in ongoing violations.
