Microsoft Fires Employees For Sit-In Protest At President's Office Against Ties To Israel

(MENAFN- Live Mint) Microsoft has fired two employees for holding a sit-in protest at the President's office against the company's ties with Israel which has been waging war against Gaza since October 2023. The company said in a statement that the two employees who were fired had“seriously breached” the company policy and code of conduct.

The two Microsoft employees have been identified as Anna Hattle and Riki Fameli. The protest group, of which they were a part of, said that they received voicemails informing them that they have been fired.

Anna Hattle and Riki Fameli and five others – all part of the protest group – were arrested during the sit-in protest at company President Brad Smith's office.

While Anna Hattle and Riki Fameli were employees of Microsoft, the other five were former employees of the company and people outside the company.

A Microsoft spokesperson said the two employees were fired following“serious breaches of company policies and our code of conduct” stemming from“the break-in at the executive offices .”

“We are here because Microsoft continues to provide Israel with the tools it needs to commit genocide while gaslighting and misdirecting its own workers about this reality,” Anna Hattle said in a statement.

Brad Smith said,“We respect the freedom of expression that everyone in this country enjoys as long as they do it lawfully.”

A joint media investigation has said an Israeli military surveillance agency was making use of Microsoft's Azure software to store countless recordings of mobile phone calls made by Palestinians living in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and Gaza.

Also Read | First Google, now Microsoft: Tech staff are in revolt over Gaza

In April, Microsoft AI CEO Mustafa Suleyman's remarks were interrupted by a pro-Palestinian protesting employee during the technology company's 50th anniversary celebration over the firm's ties with Israel. That employee and another protesting employee were also fired.

Other firms and educational institutions have faced protests over ties with Israel as the humanitarian crisis in Gaza from Israel's military assault has mounted, and images of starving Palestinians, including children, have sparked global outrage.

Microsoft asks FBI help to track Palestinian protest

The world's largest software maker has requested help from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in tracking protests, worked with local authorities to try and prevent them, flagged internal emails containing words like“Gaza” and deleted some internal posts about the protests.

Microsoft has also suspended and fired protesters for disrupting company events.

Last week, 20 people were arrested on a plaza at Microsoft's Redmond, Washington, headquarters after disregarding orders by police to disperse.

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