Microsoft fires employees who organized memorial service for Palestinians killed in Gaza

Microsoft said Friday that it had “terminated the employment of some individuals in accordance with internal policy” but declined to provide details (File) | Photo Credit: REUTERS

Microsoft fired two employees who held an unauthorized vigil at the company’s headquarters for Palestinians killed in Gaza during Israel’s war with Hamas.

Two employees told The Associated Press they were fired in a phone call late Thursday, just hours after a lunch event they held at Microsoft’s campus in Redmond, Washington.

Both workers were members of the “No Azure for Apartheid” employee coalition that opposed Microsoft’s sale of cloud computing technology to the Israeli government. But they suggested Thursday’s activity was similar to other Microsoft-approved employees organizing campaigns for people. in need.

“We have many community members who have lost family, friends or loved ones at Microsoft,” said researcher and data scientist Abdo Mohamed. “But Microsoft has truly failed to create a space where we can come together, share our pain, and honor the memories of people who can no longer speak for themselves.”

Microsoft said in a statement Friday that it had “terminated the employment of some individuals in accordance with internal policy” but declined to provide details.

Mohamed, an Egyptian, said he needed a new job within the next two months to transfer his work visa and avoid deportation.

Another fired worker, Hossam Nasr, said the purpose of the vigil was to both “honor the victims of the Palestinian genocide in Gaza and draw attention to Microsoft’s complicity in genocide due to the use of its technology by the Israeli army.”

Nasr said his firing was announced on social media by the watchdog group Stop Antisemitism more than an hour before he received the call from Microsoft. The group did not immediately respond Friday to a request for comment on how it learned of the firing.

The same group months ago called on Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella to take action against Nasr for his public stance on Israel.

Raised in Egypt, Nasr, a 2021 graduate of Harvard University, is also a co-organizer of Harvard Alumni for Palestine.

Google laid off more than 50 employees following protests against the technology earlier this year The company supplies supplies to the Israeli government during the Gaza war. The firings stemmed from civil unrest and sit-in protests at Google offices centered on “Project Nimbus,” a $1.2 billion contract signed in 2021 for Google and Amazon to provide cloud computing and artificial intelligence services to the Israeli government.

In a statement about the layoffs on Friday, Microsoft said it was “committed to maintaining a professional and respectful work environment.” “Due to privacy and confidentiality issues, we cannot provide specific details.”