Report Details Google, Amazon's Cloud Deal With Israel
Above: People stage a protest outside Google's EMEA Regional Headquarters in Dublin, Ireland, over the company's $1.2 billion Nimbus Project contract with Israel on Jan. 27, 2024. Image credit: Huzeyfe Tastan/Anadolu/Getty Images
The Facts
- A joint investigation by The Guardian, +972 Magazine and Local Call has claimed to reveal new details about Project Nimbus, a $1.2 billion cloud-computing contract between Google, Amazon and the Israeli government.
- The investigation alleges that the Project Nimbus contract includes a secret payment mechanism requiring the companies to send coded financial transfers to Israel within 24 hours when foreign courts access Israeli data, with amounts ranging from 1,000 to 100,000 shekels ($300 to $30,000).
- Payment amounts reportedly correspond to international dialing codes of requesting countries, with transfers of 1,000 shekels for U.S. requests and 3,900 shekels for Italian requests, according to the report, which cited leaked Israeli Finance Ministry documents.
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The Spin
Pro-establishment narrative
The accusations against Google, Amazon and Israel are completely false and absurd attempts to imply illegal activity where none exists. These companies have been transparent about Project Nimbus and maintain strict adherence to all legal obligations and terms of service.
Establishment-critical narrative
Google and Amazon secretly agreed to alert Israel through coded payments whenever foreign courts request Israeli data, creating an impunity-as-a-service system. This winking mechanism violates gag orders while the companies promised never to restrict Israeli military use of their platforms despite human rights violations.