Sept 25 (Reuters) - Microsoft ( MSFT ) on Thursday said

it disabled a set of cloud and AI services used by a unit within

the Israel Ministry of Defense (IMOD) after an internal review

found preliminary evidence supporting media reports of a

surveillance system in Gaza and West Bank.

Brad Smith, Microsoft's ( MSFT ) president, said the company opened

the review after an August article by the Guardian alleged

activity by a unit of the Israel Defense Forces.

The Guardian reported that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF)

was using Microsoft's ( MSFT ) Azure for collecting and storing data on

phone calls made by civilians in Gaza and the West Bank.

While the review is ongoing, Microsoft ( MSFT ) said it found

evidence supporting elements of the Guardian's reporting,

including details on IMOD's consumption of Azure storage

capacity in the Netherlands and the use of AI services.

"We do not provide technology to facilitate mass

surveillance of civilians," Smith said in a Microsoft ( MSFT ) blog.

Microsoft ( MSFT ) has informed the Israeli defense ministry of its

"decision to cease and disable specified IMOD subscriptions and

their services, including their use of specific cloud storage

and AI services and technologies."

The action does not impact Microsoft's ( MSFT ) cybersecurity

services to Israel and other countries in the Middle East, Smith

said.

In late August, Microsoft ( MSFT )

fired four employees who took part in protests

on company premises over the company's ties to Israel as

the war in Gaza continues, including two who joined a sit-in at

the office of the company's president.

The company said the terminations followed serious

breaches of company policies and the on-site demonstrations had

"created significant safety concerns."