Oxford Backs Boycott of Israel
Commenting on the decision, one council member—a teacher, specialist in special needs, mother, grandmother, and above all, a human being—stated: @tiktokdz802
♬ الصوت الأصلي – Free Palestine
'I invite you to join me in supporting this resolution, affirming our council's commitment to clear policies that uphold human rights and support international law. We cannot claim to address the climate crisis or advocate for equality and human rights while turning a blind eye to these violations.'
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Arab News
an hour ago
- Arab News
Police disperse pro-Palestinian staff protests at Microsoft HQ in Washington
WASHINGTON: Police dismantled a protest encampment set up by current and former Microsoft employees at the tech giant's headquarters in Redmond, Washington, over the company's cloud services being used by the Israeli military for surveillance operations against Palestinians. Members of the worker-led campaign group, No Azure for Apartheid, occupied Microsoft's East Campus in Redmond on Tuesday, demanding the company end its ties with Israel. The group accused Microsoft of complicity in war crimes in Gaza and the West Bank through its support of Israeli military and intelligence operations. 'In establishing the Liberated Zone, we are liberating our workplace and reclaiming our labor by refusing to do any work that could contribute to genocide and other crimes against humanity in Palestine,' said Microsoft worker Julius Shan in a letter to the company on Tuesday. 'We choose to take this step to escalate against Microsoft's active role in powering 22 months of genocide in Palestine,' he added. Microsoft workers occupy HQ in protest against company's ties to Israeli military. (Supplied) The protests follow a recent investigation by The Guardian with the Israeli-Palestinian publication +972 Magazine and Hebrew-language outlet Local Call, which revealed that Microsoft's Azure cloud services were being used by Israeli authorities to facilitate mass surveillance of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank. The system reportedly enabled the storage of millions of daily mobile phone call recordings made by Palestinians and assisted in identifying bombing targets in Gaza. On Friday, Microsoft said it launched an 'urgent' external inquiry into the allegations as executives denied their knowledge of the nature of Israel's use of Azure technology. In a statement, Microsoft said 'using Azure for the storage of data files of phone calls obtained through broad or mass surveillance of civilians in Gaza and the West Bank' would be prohibited by its terms of service. Responding to the announcement, the 'No Azure for Apartheid' group described the inquiry as 'yet another tactic to delay' meeting its demands. The group demanded that Microsoft ends sales, deals and services to all Israeli entities, call for a ceasefire and an end to the starvation in Gaza, pay reparations to the Palestinians, and end discrimination against pro-Palestinian workers. Hossam Nasr, one of the group's organizers, told Arab News that Tuesday's encampment aimed to be reminiscent of the US student-led protests at prominent universities last year. However, police officers interrupted the protests after two hours, saying the demonstrators trespassed private property and therefore were subject to arrest. In a statement to Arab News, a Microsoft spokesperson said: 'The group was asked to leave, and they left.' The demonstrators moved to a nearby public sidewalk as police officers and Microsoft security dismantled the encampment activities. In the company's plaza, demonstrators paid artistic tributes to the Palestinian victims in Gaza and held placards that read 'Join The Worker Intifada – No Labor for Genocide' targeted at Microsoft. They set up tents and a negotiation table with a large banner that read 'Microsoft Execs, Come to the Table.' The space was also filled with shrouds symbolizing the dead in Gaza, and a large plate reading, 'Stop Starving Gaza.' Police dismantled protest encampment set up by current and former Microsoft employees over the company's ties to Israeli military. (Supplied) The protests come amid growing pressure on the US tech giant from Microsoft employees and investors over its ties to the Israeli military and the role its technologies have played in the 22-month war on Gaza. Earlier in April during Microsoft's 50th anniversary celebration, an employee interrupted a panel between CEO Satya Nadella, former CEO Steve Ballmer and founder Bill Gates. Another disrupted an address from AI CEO Mustafa Suleyman. Both employees were fired. Nasr, and another organizer, Abdo Mohamed, told Arab News they were terminated for organizing what the tech giant called an 'unauthorized' vigil at Microsoft's Redmond headquarters for Palestinians killed during the war in Gaza. In response to the mounting criticism, Microsoft launched a investigation earlier this year. In May, the company said it had 'found no evidence to date' the Israeli military had failed to comply with its terms of service or used Azure 'to target or harm people' in Gaza. It said it provides Israel's Ministry of Defense with software, professional services, Azure cloud services, and Azure AI services such as language translation, as well as cybersecurity support, but denied these technologies are used to target civilians. However, the company acknowledged its limited visibility into how its technology is deployed on private or on-premises systems.
Leaders
5 hours ago
- Leaders
Israel Authorizes Controversial Settlement Project that Would Split West Bank
Israel has given final approval on a controversial settlement project that will divide the occupied West Bank in two, Reuters reported. Undermining Palestinian Statehood On Wednesday, Israel's far-right Finance Minister, Bezalel Smotrich, said that the settlement plan, known as the E1 project, will obstruct efforts to establish an independent Palestinian State. 'With E1 we are delivering finally on what has been promised for years. The Palestinian state is being erased from the table, not with slogans but with actions. Every settlement, every neighborhood, every housing unit is another nail in the coffin of this dangerous idea,' he said in a statement. Smotrich announced the plan last week as a response to the recent wave of countries announcing their intention to recognize a Palestinian State at the UN General Assembly in September. The recognition of Palestinian Statehood is part of an international push to advance the two-state solution, which envisages a Palestinian state in East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza, living side by side with Israel. E1 Settlement Project Plans for settlement in E1, an area east of Jerusalem, has been under consideration for more than two decades but was frozen amid US and European opposition that the project could undermine a future peace deal with the Palestinians. The E1 project involves the construction of about 3,400 new housing units in Maale Adumin. Israel has built about 160 settlements, housing some 700,000 Jews, since it occupied the West Bank and East Jerusalem in 1967, according to BBC. Settlement Expansion The international law deems settlements illegal. However, successive Israeli governments have allowed settlements to expand, most notably since the return of Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, to power in late 2022. Netanyahu has not commented on the E1 approval announcement. But during a visit to a West Bank settlement on Sunday, he said: 'I said 25 years ago that we will do everything to secure our grip on the Land of Israel, to prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state, to prevent the attempts to uproot us from here. Thank God, what I promised, we have delivered.' International Condemnation In response to the announcement, the Palestinian Foreign Ministry condemned the plan as it will 'isolate Palestinian communities living in the area and undermines the possibility of a two-state solution.' Similarly, a spokesperson for the German government on Wednesday said that the E1 plan violates international law and 'hinders a negotiated two-state solution and an end to the Israeli occupation of the West Bank.' The E1 settlement project also faced strong opposition from Saudi Arabia, the UK, and the EU foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, as it will further undermine the two-state solution. Short link : Post Views: 8
Leaders
7 hours ago
- Leaders
Israel Approves Gaza City Offensive Plan, Calls Up 60,000 Reservists
The Israeli Defense Minister, Israel Katz, on Wednesday approved a plan for the full takeover of Gaza City, the enclave's biggest urban hub and shelter to nearly one million Palestinians. Katz also authorized the call-up of nearly 60,000 reservists and extended service for others for the fighting in Gaza. 'As part of the next phase of Operation 'Gideon's Chariots', ~60,000 reserve orders were issued this morning, and 20,000 reservists had their service extended,' the Israeli military said in a statement. A military official told Reuters that the reservists would report for duty in September, adding that the expanded offensive in Gaza would include five divisions and that most reservists would not take place in the Gaza City operation. Earlier this month, the Israeli security cabinet approved a plan to expand the offensive in Gaza, including occupying Gaza City. As a result, the Israeli military has intensified its air strikes and ground operations in Gaza, preparing for a 'prolonged operation of several months that will run into 2026,' according to Israeli army radio. Moreover, the Israeli military announced it would start relocating Gaza residents to the south of the enclave, intensified operations in Zeitoun neighborhood, southeast of Gaza City, and started to concentrate its firepower on nearby Sabra, reported AFP. 'We will be moving into a new phase of combat, a gradual, precise and targeted operation in and around Gaza City,' a military official told reporters. He confirmed that the Israeli military had already begun operating in the neighborhoods of Zeitoun and Jabalia as part of the initial stages. The move comes as Hamas agreed to a new ceasefire proposal by mediators Egypt and Qatar, while Israel has not submitted its formal response, with officials suggesting Tel Aviv will only accept a deal that releases all hostages at once. Short link : Post Views: 34
