Microsoft fires two employees who organised Gaza support vigil

Microsoft has fired two employees who organised a vigil inside the company’s headquarters in Washington in solidarity with the Palestinian victims of Israel’s genocide in Gaza. The occupation state has killed 43,000 Palestinians and wounded more than 100,000 since October last year, with 11,000 missing, presumed dead, under the rubble of their homes and other civilian infrastructure destroyed by the occupation state.

Abdo Muhammad and Hossam Nasr told AP news agency that they organised a vigil at the company’s headquarters “to honour the victims of the genocide in Gaza and draw attention to Microsoft’s complicity in this genocide.” The two employees said that this vigil was similar to other donation campaigns that the company has approved and organised for people in need, adding, “We received news of our dismissal a few hours after the vigil.”

Microsoft, which uses its artificial intelligence systems to classify and filter information as the amount of data stored about Palestinians and the Gaza Strip increases, announced after the vigil that it “ended the employment of some individuals in accordance with internal policy,” but declined to provide further details.

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Since the start of the Israeli genocide in Gaza, Microsoft has been experiencing internal turmoil, with the company’s management alleged to be clearly biased against employees who stand in solidarity with the Palestinians, favouring those supporting Israel. It has closed comments in the internal messaging system in solidarity with Palestine and Gaza. Business Insider observed that even employees who support Israel have noticed that the company shares their views on the war, and they feel encouraged to express their opinion without fear of any effect on job security.

After the Hamas-led cross-border incursion in October last year, Microsoft issued several statements in support of the occupation regime; offered donations to Israeli organisations, including Friends of the Israel Defence Forces; and gave its 3,000 Israeli employees an additional $3,000 each to cover “unforeseen expenses”. It also restricted internal discussion and advised managers to “avoid making additional comments on the war” beyond the company’s official statements.

Other technology companies have experienced a similar situation, most notably Google. Since the start of the genocide, hundreds of its employees have been calling on the company to sever ties with the occupation army, through open letters and sit-ins.

The project that has most angered Google employees is Project Nimbus, a $1.2 billion contract that Israel signed with Google and Amazon in 2021 to provide cloud computing infrastructure, artificial intelligence (AI) and other technology services. The agreement does not prevent the occupation army from using the companies’ technology, and hence suppressing, monitoring and killing Palestinians.

READ: LA Times withdraws support for Harris over ‘Gaza genocide’, owner’s daughter claims