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Microsoft employee protests lead to 18 arrests as company reviews its work with Israel’s military
Police officers arrested 18 people at worker-led protests at Microsoft headquarters Wednesday as the tech company promises an “urgent” review of the Israeli military’s use of its technology during the ongoing war in Gaza.
Two consecutive days of protest at the Microsoft campus in Redmond, Washington called for the tech giant to immediately cut its business ties with Israel.
But unlike Tuesday, when about 35 protesters occupying a plaza between office buildings left after Microsoft asked them to leave, the protesters on Wednesday “resisted and became aggressive” after the company told police they were trespassing, according to the Redmond Police Department.
The protesters also splattered red paint resembling the color of blood over a landmark sign that bears the company logo and spells Microsoft in big gray letters.
“We said, ‘Please leave or you will be arrested,’ and they chose not to leave so they were detained,” said police spokesperson Jill Green.
Microsoft late last week said it was tapping a law firm to investigate allegations reported by British newspaper The Guardian that the Israeli Defense Forces used Microsoft’s Azure cloud computing platform to store phone call data obtained through the mass surveillance of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank.
“Microsoft’s standard terms of service prohibit this type of usage,” the company said in a statement posted Friday, adding that the report raises “precise allegations that merit a full and urgent review.”
In February, The Associated Press revealed previously unreported details about the tech giant’s close partnership with the Israeli Ministry of Defense, with military use of commercial artificial intelligence products skyrocketing by nearly 200 times after the deadly Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack. The AP reported that the Israeli military uses Azure to transcribe, translate and process intelligence gathered through mass surveillance, which can then be cross-checked with Israel’s in-house AI-enabled targeting systems.
Following The AP’s report, Microsoft acknowledged the military applications but said a review it commissioned found no evidence that its Azure platform and artificial intelligence technologies were used to target or harm people in Gaza. Microsoft did not share a copy of that review or say who conducted it.
Microsoft said it will share the latest review’s findings after it’s completed by law firm Covington & Burling.
The promise of a second review was insufficient for the employee-led No Azure for Apartheid group, which for months has protested Microsoft’s supplying the Israeli military with technology used for its war against Hamas in Gaza. The group said Wednesday the technology is “being used to surveil, starve and kill Palestinians.”
Microsoft in May fired an employee who interrupted a speech by CEO Satya Nadella to protest the contracts, and in April, fired two others who interrupted the company’s 50th anniversary celebration.
On Tuesday, the protesters posted online a call for what they called a “worker intifada,” using language evoking the Palestinian uprisings against Israeli military occupation that began in 1987.
On Wednesday, the police department said it took 18 people into custody “for multiple charges, including trespassing, malicious mischief, resisting arrest, and obstruction.” It wasn’t clear how many were Microsoft employees. No injuries were reported.
Microsoft said in a statement after the arrests that it “will continue to do the hard work needed to uphold its human rights standards in the Middle East, while supporting and taking clear steps to address unlawful actions that damage property, disrupt business or that threaten and harm others.”
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LSU vs. Clemson live updates: Tigers battle as top draft prospects Garrett Nussmeier, Cade Klubnik headline
A top-10 showdown in Death Valley (East) could be the best of a terrific Week 1 college football slate to open the 2025 season.No. 9 LSU at No. 4 Clemson has more than enough storylines to keep you interested.
In Clemson quarterback Cade Klubnik vs. LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier, you have two of the most popular options to be taken No. 1 overall in next year’s NFL Draft. It’s why multiple NFL general managers are expected to be inside Memorial Stadium on Saturday. But, it doesn’t stop there.
It’s “DLU” (Clemson’s Peter Woods, T.J. Parker) vs. what could be LSU’s reemergence as “DBU” after an aggressive offseason talent overhaul. It’s star receivers (LSU’s Nic Anderson and Barion Brown) vs. star receivers (Clemson’s Antonio Williams, Bryant Wesco Jr.) It’s Dabo Swinney vs. Brian Kelly. Tigers vs. Tigers.
A win puts the victor on the fast track to making the College Football Playoff. A loss makes the path that much more treacherous, especially for LSU and a slate that still includes six preseason top 25 SEC teams.
Keep it locked here as CBS Sports provides you with live updates, highlights and analysis as LSU battles Clemson to open the 2025 season in Week 1.
Jelena Ostapenko finally offered an apology for her U.S. Open altercation with Taylor Townsend, three days after the fact and on social media.
As Townsend moves on in Flushing Meadows — winning again in doubles on Saturday and slated for singles Round of 16 on Sunday — the beaten Ostapenko sought to move on from the fervor she caused by her on-court tantrum following a 7-5, 6-1 loss, when she told the victorious American that she had “no education.”
Townsend, who is black, added in an on-court interview that Ostapenko had accused her of having “no class” as well. Numerous players came to Townsend’s defense in the ensuing days, including Naomi Osaka and Coco Gauff.
On Saturday, Ostapenko belatedly took to social media “to apologize for some of the things” she said. While Ostapenko wasn’t specific and didn’t mention Townsend, she did offer up the language barrier as an alibi.
“English is not my native language, so when I said education, I was speaking only about what I believe as tennis etiquette, but I understand how the words I used could have offended many people beyond the tennis court,” Ostapenko wrote. “I appreciate the support as I continue to learn and grow as a person and a tennis player. Goodbye New York and I look forward to being back next year.”
Townsend has tried to take the high road.
“That has been a stigma in our community of being not educated and all of the things when it’s the furthest thing from the truth,” Townsend said.
Meanwhile, the 29-year-old Townsend continued to roll along in Flushing Meadows.
She’s slated to play Barbora Krejcikova in the Round of 16 on Sunday, and teamed with Katerina Siniakova for a second-round 6-3, 6-3 doubles win over Alycia Parks and Dayana Yastremska on Court 12 on Saturday.
They’ve risen to the top-ranked doubles team after winning Wimbledon last year and this year’s Australian Open. Now they’re into the third round.
Venus Williams, at the age of 45, teamed with Leylah Fernandez for a 7-6, 6-1 doubles win over Ulrikke Eikeri and Erl Hozuml, completed with her signature twirl at the end.
The first week of the U.S. Open has been dramatic, between blowups by Daniil Medvedev and Ostapenko and Stefanos Tsitsipas. But some players suggested it may be the city bringing out the drama.
“We’re in New York, and the fans here — I love them — but they can definitely … you’re on the wrong side of things, can … they’re into the match. They’re passionate tennis fans. They know what’s going on,” Gauff said. “And they’re used to other events, major events, happening in the city that aren’t tennis.”
Jess Pegula, from upstate New York, agreed the city may be playing a role.
“I don’t know. It’s just New York City tends to bring out just a lot of drama, I guess,” Pegula laughed. “I feel like the crowds, they’re pretty crazy. They kind of get everyone riled up. Like you said, everyone is tense.”
While Devon Walker indicated earlier this week that Saturday Night Live fans are perhaps taking his and his fellow cast members’ departures harder than the actors themselves, the former repertory player revealed today the decision to leave was a mutual one.
“The big question,” Walker began when asked by Rolling Stone in a new interview if his exit was by choice. “To be frank, I guess the best way I put it is like me and the show kind of looked at each other and we decided together that it was time to go our separate ways. I think I felt ready to leave the show, and I think the show felt ready to leave me.”
He continued, “I was just ready to do something else. We both felt like it was time. This was such a big time commitment, and life commitment. There’s been a lot of life stuff that I feel like I’ve had to miss out on. And I felt ready to do a different version of my life. I think that me and the show are both ready to turn the page.”
Elsewhere in the interview, Walker indicated he is currently exploring deals related to his music-themed comedy podcast My Favorite Lyrics and hopes to foray into dramatic television.
Walker was the first SNL member to announce his departure ahead of Season 51 of the Lorne Michaels-led late-night sketch series, which returns Oct. 4. The actor, who joined in 2022 as a featured player and was promoted last season ahead of the show’s 50th anniversary, has impersonated the likes of Frank Ocean, Michael Strahan, Shannon Sharpe, Draymond Green and Eric Adams throughout his tenure.
“Me and the show did three years together, and sometimes it was really cool,” he wrote on Instagram Monday. “Sometimes it was toxic as hell. But we did what we made the most of what it was, even amidst all of the dysfunction. We made a f—ed up lil family.”
Just days later, Emil Wakim, Michael Longfellow and Heidi Gardner would also join Walker in exiting. As Michaels cleaned house, alumna Punkie Johnson commented: “WTF is happening.”
Following an outpouring of fan support (and ire toward Michaels), Walker took to X in hopes of assuaging viewers’ intense reactions: “Yall acting like we died lol we just getting different jobs,” Walker said.
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