Google, Amazon Staff Protest Ties to Israel Spy Network
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Employees of the tech giants Google and Amazon have condemned the companies for their contract with the Israeli military to develop cloud-based cybersecurity services, and have called on their employers to cut their ties with the occupation forces.
As part of the major $1.2 billion contracts signed with the Israeli military in May, following a bid in which it beat other giants like Microsoft, Google and Amazon are to provide cloud services technology to Tel Aviv and its armed forces.
In an article published in the Guardian newspaper, however, hundreds of anonymous employees of the companies, who described themselves as "employees of conscience from diverse backgrounds", condemned the program named 'Project Nimbus.'
Referencing their belief "that the technology we build should work to serve and uplift people everywhere," the employees stated that "we are morally obligated to speak out against violations of these core values."
They wrote that "we are compelled to call on the leaders of Amazon and Google to pull out of Project Nimbus and cut all ties with the Israeli military," revealing that the signatories of the letter-number over 90 at Google and over 300 at Amazon.
The employees, who confirmed that they "are anonymous because we fear retaliation," acknowledged that "We cannot look the other way, as the products we build are used to deny Palestinians their basic rights, force Palestinians out of their homes, and attack Palestinians in the Gaza Strip."
If Google and Amazon continue with the project which would "sell dangerous technology to the Israeli military and government", then it would only enable the "further surveillance of and unlawful data collection on Palestinians, and facilitate the expansion of Israel's illegal settlements on Palestinian land."
Aside from urging the companies to abandon the project and their ties with Israel's occupation forces, the employees also "call on global technology workers and the international community to join with us in building a world where technology promotes safety and dignity for all."
