Highlights;
- Microsoft fired two employees, Riki Fameli and Anna Hattle, following their involvement in a sit-in protest at Brad Smith’s office.
- The protest, organized by No Azure for Apartheid, demanded Microsoft sever ties with the Israeli government.
- The protesters live-streamed the event on Twitch and were temporarily detained, along with former employees and another tech worker.
- Microsoft cited breach of company policies as the reason for termination.
- Brad Smith addressed the media, reiterating Microsoft’s commitment to upholding human rights, following reports of Azure’s surveillance use in Palestinian areas.
- Anna Hattle had been arrested a week prior during another protest at Microsoft’s headquarters, where 20 people were detained.
- The protest involved setting up an encampment and vandalism, emphasizing opposition to Microsoft’s contracts with Israel.
- No Azure for Apartheid continues to organize protests, targeting executives’ homes and offices.
Microsoft has terminated the employment of two workers, Riki Fameli and Anna Hattle, who participated in a sit-in protest in the office of Brad Smith, the company’s vice chair and president. The protest occurred yesterday in Building 34, where a group of seven demonstrators gained access to Smith’s office.
The incident led Microsoft to temporarily lock down its executive building. The protesters live-streamed their actions on Twitch, calling on the company to sever ties with the Israeli government. Alongside Hattle and Fameli, three former Microsoft employees—Vaniya Agrawal, Hossam Nasr, and Joe Lopez—and a former Google employee, along with another tech worker, were also arrested during the incident.
A Microsoft spokesperson, speaking to GeekWire, confirmed the terminations, stating they followed “serious breaches of company policies and our code of conduct.” However, the company declined to provide an attributable statement to The Verge.
Following the arrests, Brad Smith addressed the media in an emergency press conference held in his office, which was also streamed live on YouTube. Smith emphasized Microsoft’s commitment to upholding its human rights principles and contractual terms of service in the Middle East. He noted that an investigation had been launched earlier this month after The Guardian reported that Microsoft’s Azure cloud platform was being used for surveillance of Palestinians.
Anna Hattle had previously been arrested during protests at Microsoft’s headquarters last week, where 20 individuals were detained after a group occupied a plaza to protest the company’s contracts with Israel. Protesters had established a “Liberated Zone” encampment and poured red paint on a Microsoft sign.
The latest protests were organized by the group “No Azure for Apartheid,” which includes current and former Microsoft employees advocating for the company to end its ties with the Israeli government. The group has conducted multiple protests in recent months, with the latest actions targeting the homes and offices of Microsoft executives.
