Microsoft blocks emails from employees that mention "Palestine," "Gaza," or "genocide"

Microsoft has confirmed that it is blocking emails from pro-Palestine protestors. If you’ve watched the Microsoft Build 2025 live, you must have heard about someone interrupting Satya Nadella’s introductory keynote. Well, the Build event was interrupted at least three times on Monday by pro-Palestinian protesters. One of those interruptions caused Microsoft to accidentally leak Walmart’s AI plan.

Microsoft confirms blocking emails from employees mentioning “Palestine,” “Gaza,” or “genocide”

Now, a group called No Azure for Apartheid says Microsoft is blocking internal emails that mention “Palestine,” “Gaza,” or “genocide.” Employees discovered they couldn’t send messages using those words in either the subject or body.

Microsoft confirmed this restriction to The Verge. The company says it’s trying to limit “politically focused emails” sent to large groups of workers. Speaking with the news outlet, Microsoft’s Frank Shaw said:

Emailing large numbers of employees about any topic not related to work is not appropriate. We have an established forum for employees who have opted in to political issues. Over the past couple of days, a number of politically focused emails have been sent to tens of thousands of employees across the company, and we have taken measures to try and reduce those emails to those that have not opted in.

This blocking came after recent instances of pro-Palestine protestors who have disrupted Microsoft events. Protestors interrupted Build 2025 three times. Earlier, activists also broke into Microsoft’s 50th anniversary event, demanding the company cut ties with the Israeli government.

Microsoft says Azure and AI services aren’t harming civilians in Gaza

Microsoft still stands its ground, saying its Azure and AI services aren’t being used to harm civilians in Gaza. The company ran an internal review, hired an external firm, and found “no evidence to date” linking its tools to any attacks.

Still, the company admits it can’t always see how its software is used, especially when it’s installed on private servers or run by third-party contractors. Well, the protests continue. So does the pressure on Microsoft to be more transparent about its government contracts.