Apple just paused Jewish and Muslim employee Slack channels after deleting Israel-Hamas war posts, leaked messages show

• Apple paused dedicated internal Slack channels for Muslim and Jewish employees.
• The pause comes after Apple deleted messages from employees related to the Israel-Hamas war.
• Apple isn’t the only company moderating discussions about the war. Microsoft also did so recently.

According to internal messages obtained by Insider, Apple has just indefinitely suspended internal Slack channels for Jewish and Muslim employees after deleting messages about the Israel-Hamas conflict.

“Today, we have a very important update to share with you. “We saw and heard your feedback,” an Apple Muslim employee resource group leader wrote. “We’ve collectively decided that the only long-term solution is to temporarily pause the Apple Muslim Slack channel.” The Apple Jewish Slack channel will also follow suit.”

According to a source familiar with the channel, the pause follows Apple’s removal of messages related to the Israel-Hamas conflict.

“We’re taking this action to ensure a respectful environment for our communities during this painful and tragic time,” the person wrote, acknowledging that employees may be upset with the decision. “We know this comes at a time in which we need community more than ever.”

The contents of the messages deleted by Apple have not been confirmed by an insider. In one Slack message that Insider did see, an employee observed that off-limits topics for Muslim employees appeared to be organizing efforts, protests, Quran verses, frustration with the situation in Gaza, and “certain words that are said by international organizations.”

Apple did not respond immediately to a request for comment.

According to reports, Apple CEO Tim Cook has remained “tight-lipped” about the war.

However, according to a copy seen by Insider, he did send at least one company-wide email to employees shortly after the October 7 Hamas attacks.

“Like so many of you, I am devastated by the horrific attacks in Israel and the tragic reports coming out of the region,” Cook said in an email to employees on October 9. “My heart goes out to the victims, those who have lost loves ones, and all of the innocent people who are suffering as a result of this violence.”

Apple isn’t the only company that moderates employee debates about the Israel-Hamas conflict. According to internal messages obtained by Insider, Microsoft recently terminated an employee discussion.

One employee wrote on Microsoft’s internal “all company” message board that he felt a “strong sense of disillusionment with our work and the company” because of what he saw as “one-sided statements” by the company’s senior leaders in support of Israel. After about 60 comments, Microsoft closed the discussion.