A major technology corporation has terminated a specialized Israeli military unit’s access to key cloud and artificial intelligence services after determining the technology was being used to operate a mass surveillance system targeting Palestinian civilians.
The company informed Israeli defense officials that Unit 8200, an elite intelligence division, had violated service terms by utilizing its Azure cloud platform to store and process enormous volumes of intercepted cellular communications from Gaza and the West Bank. The decision follows an external review launched after reports detailed the surveillance program’s scope.
According to sources familiar with the matter, the intelligence unit had established a system capable of collecting and analyzing millions of Palestinian phone calls daily. The project’s scale was captured by an internal mantra describing its capacity: “A million calls an hour.”
The surveillance data, estimated at thousands of terabytes, was reportedly stored in a European data center before being relocated following public disclosure of the program. The technology firm’s investigation concluded that the military unit’s activities constituted mass surveillance of civilians, which violates corporate policy.
In a communication to employees, a senior company executive stated they “do not provide technology to facilitate mass surveillance of civilians” and emphasized this principle has been applied consistently worldwide for over twenty years. The executive acknowledged that external reporting had revealed information the company could not access due to customer privacy commitments.
The termination marks the conclusion of a three-year period during which the intelligence agency operated its surveillance program using the company’s cloud infrastructure. The system allowed for extended data retention and analysis using artificial intelligence techniques.
While this specific unit has lost access to certain cloud and AI services, the broader commercial relationship between the technology company and the Israeli military remains intact. The decision represents the first known instance of a major technology provider withdrawing services from the Israeli military since the conflict in Gaza began.
The case raises significant questions about military policies regarding storage of sensitive intelligence data in third-party cloud platforms hosted overseas. Company executives stated they were unaware the cloud services would be used for storing intercepted communications content when initially engaging with the military unit.
The external review, conducted by legal counsel, based its findings on examination of internal documents and communications after being unable to access customer data directly. The investigation remains ongoing as the company continues to assess its technology’s applications.
