Cops arrest 7 Gaza protesters who occupied Microsoft presidents office | Latest Tech News
Several pro-Palestinian protesters had been arrested on Tuesday after they stormed the places of work of Microsoft President Brad Smith —(*7*) the latest escalation in a long-running marketing campaign by workers to compel the firm to cut ties with Israel.
Seven demonstrators, among them two company workers, stormed Microsoft headquarters in Redmond, Wash., on Tuesday and occupied Smith’s office.
The demonstrators refused orders to go away, delivering what they described as a “court summons” before hiding telephones under couches and bookshelves to report the scene. Police finally dragged them out, Smith said at a briefing.
Demonstrators storm Microsoft’s Redmond headquarters and occupy President Brad Smith’s office before being eliminated by police. No Azure for Apartheid
Protesters inside Microsoft headquarters refuse to go away after delivering what they called a “court summons” to Brad Smith. No Azure for Apartheid
“Obviously, when seven folks do as they did today — storm a building, occupy an office, block other people out of the office, plant listening devices … that’s not OK,” Smith said.
“That’s why for those seven folks, the Redmond police literally had to take them out of the building.”
The motion was the latest in a sequence of escalating confrontations led by “No Azure for Apartheid,” a worker-driven marketing campaign urging Microsoft to sever contracts with Israel.
The group accuses the company of enabling warfare crimes by permitting Israel to use its Azure cloud platform for surveillance and intelligence gathering.
A demonstrator affiliated with “No Azure for Apartheid” movies from inside Microsoft’s Redmond campus sit-in. No Azure for Apartheid
Their calls for intensified earlier this month after the British publication Guardian reported that Israel’s navy used Microsoft’s cloud to store Palestinians’ telephone calls — an allegation that prompted Microsoft to open a third-party investigation.
“We think the responsible step is to investigate and get to the truth of how our services are being used,” Smith said Tuesday.
He burdened that most of Microsoft’s work with the Israel Defense Forces entails cybersecurity, while reiterating the company’s dedication to “ethical” use of its technology.
But the protests show no indicators of abating.
Police arrive to disperse protesters who occupied Microsoft places of work over the company’s ties to Israel’s navy. No Azure for Apartheid
Over the weekend, activists turned up in kayaks on Lake Washington, circling the waterfront mansions of CEO Satya Nadella and Smith while unfurling banners accusing the company of profiting from genocide in Gaza.
Days earlier, 20 protesters had been arrested outdoors Microsoft’s campus, Smith said, noting that most had never labored at the company.
Internal emails reviewed by Bloomberg counsel the company is treating the marketing campaign as a growing security risk.
Microsoft’s investigations unit reportedly flagged outspoken workers to the FBI’s Seattle office, even warning federal brokers about kinfolk of staffers tied to demonstrations.
The company also labored with local officers to set up airport-style checkpoints, prohibit access to public areas, and bar activist insignia at its annual Build developer convention.
In April, those measures failed to stop two headline-grabbing disruptions.
Engineer Ibtihal Aboussad tossed a Palestinian keffiyeh scarf onto the stage during a keynote by AI chief Mustafa Suleyman.
Microsoft President Brad Smith briefs reporters after seven demonstrators had been forcibly eliminated from his office. Microsoft/YouTube
Hours later, another worker, Vaniya Agrawal, interrupted a panel with Nadella, Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer. Both later resigned in protest.
The crackdown has also led to firings. Last October, Microsoft dismissed two staff, including software program engineer Hossam Nasr, who had organized a lunchtime vigil and fundraiser for Gaza victims at the company’s headquarters.
Nasr has remained lively in the “No Azure for Apartheid” marketing campaign, publicly accusing Microsoft of complicity in genocide.
Microsoft insists it doesn’t punish staff for expressing political opinions but attracts the road at what it considers threats or disruptions. Smith said the company will review whether or not the 2 workers who occupied his office ought to face self-discipline.
Kayak protesters circle the waterfront mansions of Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and President Brad Smith on Lake Washington. Instagram / @noazureforapartheid
Microsoft is among a number of tech giants, including Google and Amazon, going through employee uprisings over profitable authorities contracts tied to the Middle East.
Last 12 months, Google fired dozens of workers after they staged sit-ins over its Project Nimbus deal with Israel.
For Smith — once seen as the conciliatory face of Microsoft, identified for forging bipartisan ties in Washington and selling the company’s moral use of artificial intelligence — the disaster represents a stern take a look at of management.
He sought to steadiness sympathies on both sides Tuesday, noting that Microsoft “cares deeply” about Israelis killed in Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, assault and the hostages taken, as effectively as the tens of hundreds of Palestinians killed since in Gaza.
The Post has sought remark from Microsoft and “No Azure for Apartheid.”
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