Microsoft has terminated four employees who participated in workplace protests against the company’s business ties with Israel, Al Jazeera reported on Friday. Two of those dismissed, Anna Hattle and Riki Fameli, were informed via voicemail after they joined a sit-in at the office of company president Brad Smith earlier this week. Two others, Nisreen Jaradat and Julius Shan, were also sacked after being linked to demonstrations organized by the protest group No Azure for Apartheid. The group has staged encampments at Microsoft headquarters, accusing the company of supplying tools that aid Israel’s war in Gaza. Microsoft said the firings were due to “serious breaches” of company policy and cited “significant safety concerns” caused by the protests.

Protests And Worker Demands

The dismissals came after seven demonstrators, including Hattle and Fameli, were arrested on Tuesday for occupying Smith’s office. Protest organizers demanded Microsoft end its business ties with Israel and provide reparations to Palestinians. “We are here because Microsoft continues to provide Israel with the tools it needs to commit genocide,” Hattle said in a statement released by the group. Microsoft responded that it respects freedom of expression “as long as it is done lawfully.” Other employees have also staged protests in recent months, including at the company’s 50th anniversary celebration, where two workers were later dismissed for interrupting a keynote by Microsoft AI chief Mustafa Suleyman.

Azure Cloud And Surveillance Allegations

Tensions escalated after a joint investigation by The Guardian, +972 Magazine, and Local Call revealed that an Israeli military surveillance agency used Microsoft’s Azure cloud platform to store large volumes of mobile phone recordings from Palestinians in Gaza and the occupied West Bank. Protest groups say this shows Microsoft’s technology directly supports Israel’s surveillance operations. Microsoft has since asked the law firm Covington & Burling LLP to review the allegations.