Microsoft has gone nuclear on its own employees � calling in the FBI and local police to crush a wave of Gaza-related protests that have spiraled from office disruptions to flotillas outside the lakefront mansions of its top bosses.
Over the weekend, pro-Palestinian activists paddled kayaks across Lake Washington, circling near the luxury homes of CEO Satya Nadella and President Brad Smith while chanting and waving banners accusing the tech giant of �profiting from genocide.�
The dramatic waterborne protest is just the latest flashpoint in a year-long rebellion by a group calling itself No Azure for Apartheid, which claims Microsoft�s cloud technology is fueling Israel�s war in Gaza.
Instead of negotiating with terrorist sympathizers, the $3 trillion company turned to law enforcement. Internal emails show Microsoft investigators flagged employees � and even their family members � to the FBI�s Seattle office, warning of �disruptions� to upcoming events.
Two engineers were fired last year after staging a lunchtime vigil for Palestinians at Microsoft HQ.
In April, one staffer hurled a keffiyeh onto the stage during an AI keynote. Another hijacked a panel featuring Nadella, Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer. Both quit in protest.
Weeks later, a worker stood on a chair during Nadella�s remarks, shouting accusations of �war crimes.� He was fired that night.
Just last week, cops zip-tied 20 protesters after they set up a �liberated zone� in a Redmond plaza and chanted executives� names.
Smith defended calling in the feds. �This isn�t about dialogue anymore,� he said. �It�s a matter for law enforcement.�
Microsoft � long seen as the �quiet� Big Tech giant compared to scandal-ridden rivals � is now at the center of one of the most polarizing conflicts in the world.
Despite FBI scrutiny, firings, and police crackdowns, activists say they won�t back down. In a defiant statement, No Azure for Apartheid said: �The fact Microsoft is attempting to use law enforcement to silence its own workers should be a wake-up call to anyone who dares organize. We are unfazed by scare tactics.�
(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
Join the official YWN WhatsApp status
One Response
other groups, such as white supremacists, will learn a lesson or two from these idiots. imagine kkk sympathizers, for example, organizing similar protests, and then being �unfazed by scare tactics�.