Microsoft fires two employees who protested company’s pro-Israel policy

The former workers accused senior executives of having “blood on their hands” over the IDF’s use of Microsoft AI in its military operations in Gaza.

By David Brummer, World Israel News

At a recent event celebrating Microsoft’s 50th anniversary, the U.S. technology giant fired two of its employees following an outburst directed at its AI CEO, Mustafa Suleyman, over the company’s close ties with Israel.

The celebration, held on Friday in Redmond, in Washington state—where the company is headquartered—was attended by senior figures, including Microsoft founder Bill Gates and former CEO Steve Ballmer. During Suleyman’s address, Ibtihal Aboussad, a Moroccan engineer based in Canada, said the company was not using its AI for good but was being sold to the “Israeli military.” Quoting straight from the Hamas playbook, she effectively accused the company of being complicit in the death of 50,000 people, saying that “Microsoft powers genocide [sic] in our region.”

Security officers cut her protest short and escorted her from the premises. Vaniya Agrawal, another employee, also interrupted the event.

Aboussad was fired on Monday over “just cause, wilful misconduct, disobedience or wilful neglect of duty.” There was some confusion over whether Microsoft terminated Agrawal’s contract or whether she preemptively resigned, but it was both. She had already given her notice in a widely circulated email to colleagues, although she was told to leave five days early.

As it has done previously in similar situations, the company emphasized in its letter that there are official channels through which to raise issues, and these channels do not include making such accusations in public, which were “designed to gain notoriety and cause maximum disruption to this highly anticipated event.”