Microsoft fired two employees after they protested the company's ties to Israel

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Two Microsoft employees were fired after they took part in a sit-in outside the office of the company's president to protest its ties to Israel.

Anna Hattle and Ricky Famely received voicemails informing them they were being fired, the group No Azure for Apartheid said in a statement. In addition to them, five more people took part in the protest, who were detained after the seizure of the office of company president Brad Smith. They are either former Microsoft employees or people who have never worked for the company.

“We are here because Microsoft continues to provide Israel with the tools it needs to commit genocide,” Hattle said during the protest.

A Microsoft spokesperson said the employees were fired after "serious violations of company policy and our code of conduct" that resulted from a "break-in at management offices."

The name of the organization, No Azure for Apartheid, refers to the Microsoft Azure cloud service, which is used by the Israeli army and authorities to occupy Palestinian territories and wage war.

A joint investigation by +972, Local Call and The Guardian says the Israeli military intelligence agency used Microsoft Azure to store phone call records of Palestinians living in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip.

This is not the first time Microsoft has fired employees who oppose the corporation's cooperation with Israel. In April, protesters interrupted a speech by Microsoft AI CEO Mustafa Suleiman, demanding to sever all ties with Israel. As a result, one employee who participated in the action was fired.