Microsoft employees occupy HQ over Israel contracts
On Tuesday, a significant escalation in ongoing protests against Microsoft’s contracts with the Israeli military unfolded as a coalition of current and former employees, alongside community members, occupied a plaza at the company’s Redmond, Washington headquarters. Declaring the space a “Liberated Zone” encampment, the activists renamed East Campus Plaza to “The Martyred Palestinian Children’s Plaza.” The organizing group, “No Azure for Apartheid” – a Microsoft division of the broader “No Tech for Apartheid” organization – announced the action via a press release, stating that approximately 50 individuals were present at the onset of the demonstration.
The protesters established a visible presence with tents and symbolic installations mourning losses in Gaza, including draped shrouds and a large plate bearing the stark message, “Stop Starving Gaza.” Central to their display was a negotiating table, set up with an explicit invitation for Microsoft executives to engage directly and commit to ending the company’s partnership with the Israeli military. The group has indicated its intent to maintain the occupation until they are forcibly removed. Microsoft has not yet responded to requests for comment regarding the protest.
This latest action marks the most substantial in a series of high-profile demonstrations targeting Microsoft and its leadership over its engagement with Israel. Earlier this year, in April, Microsoft’s 50th-anniversary celebration was disrupted when a software engineer from the company’s AI division interrupted a speech by Microsoft AI CEO Mustafa Suleyman, demanding that the Israeli military be barred from utilizing the company’s AI products. A similar protest occurred at another event on the same day, where a different software engineer interrupted a speech by Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. Both employees were quickly terminated following their actions. A month later, employees reported that Microsoft had begun blocking internal Outlook emails that contained terms such as “Palestine,” “Gaza,” “genocide,” “apartheid,” and “IOF off Azure.”
According to a press release from No Azure for Apartheid, the current occupation represents the “biggest escalation targeting Microsoft” to date. The group cited a recent investigation, published earlier this month by The Guardian in collaboration with +972 Magazine and Local Call, which revealed that the Israeli government aimed to store recordings and data from up to a million Palestinian calls per hour. These reports suggested that the collected data reportedly informed Israel’s military operations in Gaza and the West Bank, a key point of contention for the protesters.
The activists also circulated a document titled “We will not be cogs in the Israeli genocidal machine: a call for a Worker Intifada.” Authored by “Microsoft workers, former workers, and community members of conscience,” the document issues a comprehensive call for Microsoft to sever all ties with Israel. It further demands an end to what they describe as “genocide and forced starvation,” reparations for Palestinians, and an end to Microsoft’s alleged discrimination against Palestinian, Arab, Muslim, and pro-Palestinian employees. Additionally, it calls for the company to safeguard all employees engaged in Palestinian advocacy from workplace harm and harassment. The document encourages workers at Microsoft and other companies to “speak out, walk out, protest, and strike,” urging them to demand their workplaces “cut ties and divest from all partnerships contributing to what they term ‘genocidal actions,’ specifically mentioning any relationships with Israel or Microsoft.” The document even provides an email address for Microsoft executives to initiate negotiations, reinforcing the invitation to the negotiating table established in the plaza.