Microsoft is reportedly banning Palestinians in the U.S. for life for calling relatives in Gaza
A BBC investigation reveals that Microsoft is permanently banning Palestinians in the U.S. and other countries who use Skype to call relatives in Gaza.
Reportedly, Microsoft has been banning and wiping the accounts of users who have leveraged Skype to contact relatives in Gaza. In some cases, email accounts over a decade old have been locked, destroying access to banking accounts, OneDrive storage, and beyond.
United States resident Salah Elsadi lost his account of over 15 years in the dragnet. "I've had this Hotmail for 15 years. They banned me for no reason, saying I have violated their terms — what terms? Tell me. I've filled out about 50 forms and called them many many times." Eiad Hametto from Saudi Arabia echoed the report, "We are civilians with no political background who just wanted to check on our families. They’ve suspended my email account that I’ve had for nearly 20 years. It was connected to all my work. They killed my life online."
Many of the users affected by the bans expressed that Microsoft may be falsely labelling them as Hamas
It's completely normalized racism. America has been institutionalizing Islamophobia for years to justify their invasions of the Middle East where we kill millions of
innocent civilians"terorrists"Before the 2000's a lot of that manufactured hate was directed towards Asians because we needed to justify war crimes in Japan, Korea, Vietnam, Laos etc.
https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2007/07/gary-hart-lynne-cheney-and-war-with-china/7644/
Early in 2001, the commission presented a report to the incoming G.W. Bush administration warning that terrorism would be the nation's greatest national security problem, and saying that unless the United States took proper protective measures a terrorist attack was likely within its borders. Neither the president nor the vice president nor any other senior official from the new administration took time to meet with the commission members or hear about their findings.
The commission had 14 members, split 7-7, Republican and Democrat, as is de rigeur for bodies of this type. Today Hart told me that in the first few meetings, commission members would go around the room and volunteer their ideas about the nation's greatest vulnerabilities, most urgent needs, and so on.
At the first meeting, one Republican woman on the commission said that the overwhelming threat was from China. Sooner or later the U.S. would end up in a military showdown with the Chinese Communists. There was no avoiding it, and we would only make ourselves weaker by waiting. No one else spoke up in support.
The same thing happened at the second meeting -- discussion from other commissioners about terrorism, nuclear proliferation, anarchy of failed states, etc, and then this one woman warning about the looming Chinese menace. And the third meeting too. Perhaps more.
Finally, in frustration, this woman left the commission.
"Her name was Lynne Cheney," Hart said. "I am convinced that if it had not been for 9/11, we would be in a military showdown with China today." Not because of what China was doing, threatening, or intending, he made clear, but because of the assumptions the Administration brought with it when taking office. (My impression is that Chinese leaders know this too, which is why there are relatively few complaints from China about the Iraq war. They know that it got the U.S. off China's back!)
So what you’re saying is: Lynne Cheney has been wrong for 23 years so far.
Plenty of folks on here have bought into the China Boogeyman narrative. Her family's propaganda has been devastatingly effective. We likely will be at war with China in another generation, given our current trajectory.
China isn't blameless. Factory and camp narratives aside, their naval actions are bellicose.
The atrocities that western nations have had to commit to keep a foothold in places like Osaka, the Philippines, Indonesia, Pakistan, and India really disqualify any of these folks from claiming another country is "bellicose". We're still out in Oceania committing genocides of native peoples, to this day.
That's before you get into some belly-aching about a Chinese warship sailing through the Straight of Taiwan, as though its not American property.
Hahaha. First of all this is old, there's not any bases in Afghanistan anymore. Second, this is the same propaganda Russia runs with about NATO. They do belligerent stuff and then complain when their neighbors ask the country with a bigger stick for protection. Also, did someone include HK in this graphic? I know there's lots of US bases in the Pacific, but I think someone is gilding the lily.
But also no, it's not just about sailing a ship through Taiwanese waters. We do the same thing to China all the time, just to remind them that under international law that's okay.
It's conducting war games that completely surround Taiwan.
It's claiming a ridiculous area for it's EEZ, far larger than international law allows and completely disregarding any potential EEZ for other countries in the area.
It's sinking fishing vessels in international water
It's hacking the government systems of it's neighbors
The list goes on...
This is not a one sided provocation. We do war games with South Korea and Japan every year where we pretend to invade China and North Korea.
The waters that China (both the PRC and ROC btw) claims were promised to them under an international treaty that predates the League of Nations China never agreed to cede those waters, other countries started sailing in them during the Chinese Civil War when neither side could enforce their claim, and the modern UN's position is that China lost their claim through lack of enforcement.
You mean the one fishing vessel that sank in an accident? The Chinese crew was grossly negligent, sure, but you make it sound the PLAN is sailing around shooting at fisherman.
We all do that. I agree it's bad but there would need to be a mutual stand down agreement.
We do not pretend to invade China. There is no plan to invade a country of a billion people with a Normandy style landing across the entire ocean. That's a ridiculous claim. And as for planning to fight NK, you think maybe their constant nuclear threats against the US West Coast have anything to do with that?
South Korea has been an ally for 70 years, we aren't just going to leave them. Trying to make defending allies and aggressively going after the vessels of other countries in an insane claim of an economic zone equivalent is just ridiculous.
According to China, the claims predate modern civilization entirely. That doesn't make them true or consistent with international law.
It wouldn't matter if it was just one vessel, but no it's not. And the Chinese Coast Guard didn't play it off as an accident. They said the Vietnamese fisherman had refused to leave the area China was claiming. For more fuckery let's look at them stealing military supplies from the Philippine Navy.
Like I said above, the list goes on. And if all we ever do is conduct a war game to remind NK they aren't shit we could never be as aggressive as China.
wow what an attitude. everything will get old, so you're fine with your sides atrocities cuz they're "old" but it's just not acceptable with others. Hahaha, suddenly a saint of peace, eh?
It more seems like you'll be fine by no matter what your side does, and will have deflections lined up with propaganda but are gonna have a meltdown when it's the other side doing what you fuckers do without consequences.
Attitude like yours is why there'll never be peace.
No it's also wrong. The US has never had a base in Hong Kong. And most of the bases in the area pre-date China's rise to being a regional power, much less their modern stance.
This is just straight up main character syndrome in national form.
Also we aren't out there sinking or seizing Chinese vessels and threatening invasions. Our entire stance is, "leave our allies alone".
But leave it to someone from .ml to ride in and try to twist the truth in China's favor.
There actually are several NATO installations still in and around Kabul to secure the international airport and the US Embassy.
The US also conducts war games across the South China Sea, including between China and Japan and through the Chinese territorial waters in and around the Korean peninsula. These have become tit-for-tat exercises, and would stop if the US was no longer in the region.
Glances at the US base map Yes. Ridiculous.
Show your work. When did China conduct a military operation to sink a fishing vessel?
I'm sure they'll quit right after the NSA does.
Buddy. There are no more NATO forces in Afghanistan. The Embassy was evacuated. Bagram was evacuated. Years ago now.
And why is China punishing Taiwan for American war games? They have plenty of ocean to use. And are you now claiming Jeju Island for China?
Our bases are not an Exclusionary Economic Zone. The Nine Dashed Line is indefensible.
Oh, now I need to prove stuff after you show up with a gilded lily of a meme masquerading as a map?
And I don't dispute that the CIA hacks governments. I also don't pretend it's going to make them our friend or blame those countries for seeking protection from the CIA.
Why would China engage in military conflict with the USA when they can just sit back and watch the USA collapse on its own?
Because a good solid shove can always make a collapse happen earlier.
I don't understand the overarching point of this comment.
Military Industrial Complex needs to be fed.
In reply to a conment about racism and Islamophobia, mentioning that "Liz Cheney thought we'd be going to war with China" doesn't really track.
Without America the Palestine people would have starved to death years ago. Their own Arabian brothers won't even help them. America doesn't need to institionalize islamaphobia when they do it themselves. You can look into any Islam media and you would find they actively burn u.s. flags on state media and call for our destruction. Nothing was needed to justify your made up war crimes in any of those countries because they all started the wars. Japan bombed pearl harbor. North Korea invaded South Korea. Vietnam Gulf of tonkin. Etc etc.
Lol fuck off with that hard angle, also the Gulf of Tonkin was a false flag.
The fun thing with Tonkin is it doesn't even need to be a false flag, it can credibly be explained by a bad radar return. I don't know which is is a worse basis to get 400,000 Americans Killed? (Including Agent Orange and Suicide numbers)
Haha that was funny. Mentioning the Gulf of Tonkin incident as justification for war and really meaning it
Without America, Palestine would be united and free by now. A single multicultural country from the river to the sea that can recognize and celebrate its diverse people and history. Instead though we have a genocidal European colony.
LO-fuckin-L at using Gulf of Tonkin, a well known false flag operation meant solely to draw the US into a protracted conflict we had no business being in. 🤡
I mean sure maybe the August 4th incident was overblown but the August 2nd 1964 incident did happen where our ship was attacked by Vietnam torpedo boats. Maybe you get attacked and don't do shit at all about it who is the real clown there?
Ohhhh got it, only one false flag attack was committed by the US. That means the war in Vietnam was justified.
To be clear regarding "false flag" operations for anyone unaware: this entails attacking our own military in order to provide spurious cassus belli to enter a conflict we had no valid reason to enter. In this case, a civil war on the other side of the planet, in a bay we should never have been in to begin with.
How stupid does a person need to be to think that, not only was the war in Vietnam justified, but that the Gulf of Tonkin false flag incident is that justification?
Vietnam torpedo boats attacked our ship on August 2 1964. Deny that fact as much as you want. Our ship was in international waters when attacked. There were multiple justifications to get in that war I don't really care to get into them. Tldr: We help our allies and protect democracy in the region.
LMAO. Your military protects interests of the billionaires and their economy. It has fuck all to do about democracy.
But keep guzzling whatever you already are, those braincells aren't going to repeat propaganda by itself.
South Vietnam allied. Democracy in the region couldn't fall because it creates a domino effect where democracy looks week.
Wtf are you talking about billionaires. Our military protects the interests of all our allies especially European and Asian.
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You use re-vanced lmfao. Fuck outta here brokie. Just a sad propagandized loser who despises their own country.
Lol nothing says confidence like going through someone's comment history to try to find things to hurt them... Good think I'm not ashamed of either of those things.
And just to clarify the latter: criticizing your own country because of the awful things it is doing ≠ hate. Usually it's literally the opposite. If I despised my country, I wouldn't be so distraught as I watch it being sold for parts for next to nothing.
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Right?! Could you imagine if some country attacked one of our naval ships and we didn't do anything about it?
Hold on, I need my popcorn for this!
The 6 day Israel-Arab war. A casualty was encourred and Israel pleaded it was an accidental casualty of war. They made concessions.
The gulf of tonkin. Not a casualty but a calculated attack.
Yep complete accident. Have you read any of the reports? The ship was broadcasting it's nationality in every way possible. The only way it was a mistake was if the Israelis turned off all of their communications and fired with their eyes closed.
Yes indeed I did. It's completely false the ship was broadcasting nationality in every way possible. The ship wasn't even suppose to be as close as it was because they were experiencing multiple communication failures. Nice bullshit comment though.
The ship was in international waters and clearly not a warship. That orders to move away given in an abundance of caution didn't arrive in time has no bearing on the situation. It should not have been attacked for that reason alone. Pilots were clearly able to identify the ship as there are several recorded exchanges in Israeli headquarters about it being an American ship before it was attacked and visual contact with pilots was their only contact with Israeli forces until they were attacked. So even the attacking pilots should have known. The only reason they would attack anyways is if they had direct orders to fire, with that knowledge. In fact in one of the recordings they bring up the American ship and are ordered to fire anyways.
Once there was an attempt at communication, the response was ignored and they were torpedoed anyways.
There's no way to interpret this as anything other than a brazen and willing war crime to neutralize an American ship.
I've read the unclassified investigation reports. A lot of what you say is simply made up. In fact pilots initially thought it was an Egyptian vessel through efforts to identify the ship which was clouded in smoke after failing to signal the ship to identify themselves. It wasn't until after the attack launched and one torpedo boat approached an opposite side of the liberty did they see the ships hull number therefore realizing they falsely identified the ship and called off the attack.
Yea because their shoreline was being shelled for hours at that point and the ship was heading towards one of their ports. You may not realize but every minute matters in war. The Liberty ignored the request to identify which was one of a few mistakes made.
You read the Israeli propaganda then. Because this is all a matter of public record, even the Israeli pilots doing the attack have admitted they were able to read the ships identification off the hull after they bombed the flag away.
The IDF has shown itself to be completely incapable of telling the truth and American presidents just accepted that during the cold war. But that time is gone and over. Public sentiment is finally turning against the apartheid regime. So the second your last silent generation defender is gone the sanctions are going to come. Your F-35s are going to be like Iran's F-14s.
Yea that's a pure lie. Israeli pilots didn't identify a hull number. The only pilot to identify the ship was a helicopter pilot who was able to see the small flag it was flying after getting closer to provide assistance. You realize the ship was clouded in smoke while pilots tried to identify it like a smokescreen. And you say a pilot hundreds of feet away seen through the smoke a hull number.
I will say Israeli Navy not air force did identify the ship earlier that morning but I'm done here. Don't care to break this down further to you you'll just counter with some lala land bullshit.
See like this one. Lmfao. Keep dreaming.
Iran won't help Palestine, but also Iran is the shadowy hand behind Hamas.
Egypt won't help Palestine, but the CIA/MI5 need to coup the elected government every decade or three when it gets to Muslim Brotherhood-y.
Lebanon won't help Palestine, but Israel says there are tunnels into Gaza from Lebanon so they need to start bombing again.
Turkyie won't help Palestine, but the IDF had to murder Turkish aid workers in 2010 to prevent their aid flotilla from reaching the shore.
So Palestinians are Hamas?
Why is Iran not helping Fatah?
Their support of Hamas is on ideological grounds. Israel is holy waqf land that belongs to Muslims and should be cleansed from Jews.
Even when Egypt had sovereignty over Gaza they made sure to prevent Palestinians from going to Egypt.
Tunnels from Lebanon... to Gaza..? Where'd you read that?
Hezbollah begun bombing Israel in support of Hamas. They're also funded by Iran (much more than Hamas though).
Meanwhile Palestinians live in camps in Lebanon. Some of those walled and surrounded by watchtowers.
They have less rights there than anyone else (including refugees and migrant workers), despite living there for 3 generations at this point.
Turkey under Erdogan has been mostly hosting Hamas leaders while bombing Kurds in Syria.
I don't think much needs to be said about Assad.
The only country in the area which actually helped Palestinians was Jordan. Although that also changed for a while after Black September.
Most of UNRWA's funding over the years has come from the EU and USA.
That's crazy because I've heard Israelis assert the exact opposite.
There's a certain dramatic irony in funding UNRWA, paying Israel to bomb UNRWA, and then claiming you're the only folks providing aid to Palestinians.
Yes, religious extremists exist also in Israel.
I'm not the one who wrote USA is the only one providing aid.
What you quoted is the reality. The bulk of the funding over the years has been from the USA and the EU.
He's really bad at sarcasm. He's trying to point out the inconsistencies.
Your point being what? That they fund Hamas so they're helping?
Somehow Egypt helps them by having secret govt backed coups? Instead they could have just taken in refugees but why would they do that? They'll just have a coup instead.
So Lebanon helps the Palestine people by building tunnels where Hamas stored weapons and hostages?
I recall the Turkish police raiding those same charity offices accusing them of being linked to Islamic terrorists.
Uh... Literally yes. Palestinian Islamist resistance is the only notable resistance movement in Palestine.
My man the Egyptian government is an American puppet what are you talking about?
Literally yes. See above.
You heard it here first folks, war crimes don't exist if they burn your flag!
Well yes. Do you have any idea how much US neo-colonialism has harmed the Middle East over the past 70 years? Your country supports ISIS for fuck's sake go touch some grass.
Also why do you think their Muslim brothers won't help them? Surely not because most of the Arab world is run by American puppets.