Activists break into Microsoft datacentre site in Amsterdam

Activists from Geef Tegengas, a Dutch direct action group, broke into the construction site of a Microsoft datacentre at Westpoort in Amsterdam on Friday, 6 November 2026, at the start of two days of protests against datacentres. The Guardian reported that some members climbed a crane, lit flares and tied helium balloons to equipment. Datacentres are large computer facilities that run cloud and artificial intelligence services.

The protesters hung banners objecting to Microsoft's services to the Israeli military and to US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the American federal immigration agency. They also attached a banner reading "Genocide" to scaffolding on the site.

Police told the Dutch public broadcaster NOS that they tried to stop the occupation and arrest protesters, but could not prevent it, and that force was used. Police said one officer was slightly injured. Protesters from both groups said police used force and teargas to disperse activists trying to enter the site. Organisers and local media reported hundreds of protesters on each side of the perimeter fence. Bloomberg reported that more than 100 protesters broke into the site.

According to DutchNews, the action was originally organised by Geef Tegengas and joined by Extinction Rebellion and other groups. Stop Dirty Data Centres, a coalition that includes national branches of Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth, said it had not coordinated or promoted the direct action in the Netherlands. Its affiliated members remained outside the fence.

The Amsterdam break-in took place during a wider European campaign. More than 100 groups took part in two days of protests demanding moratoria, or temporary bans, on the construction of new datacentres. Smaller demonstrations were held in central Bristol, at a datacentre in Berlin, outside the Polish parliament in Warsaw and in the main square in Zagreb. Deutsche Welle reported that campaigners had planned protests in 16 countries.

Campaigners say the AI building boom threatens water supplies, power grids and climate goals. The Guardian reported in April that Microsoft and other US tech firms had lobbied the EU in ways that kept the environmental impact of their datacentres out of public view.

Dutch activists have targeted Microsoft before. In August 2025, the Guardian reported that they had blocked access to a Microsoft facility near Middenmeer, in the north of the Netherlands.