A former Intel employee has filed a lawsuit against the technology giant Intel. Using the pseudonym John Doe, the employee alleged that he was wrongfully terminated after raising concerns about antisemitic behaviour and support for terrorism displayed by a senior executive he reported to.
The lawsuit, filed in a Manhattan federal court, claims that Doe, who served as a vice-president of engineering, was fired on 2 April, in what Intel described as a cost-cutting measure. However, Doe contends that his termination was a retaliation, as it came just two months after he was reassigned to report directly to Alaa Badr, Intel’s vice-president of customer success.
Doe, who is a former soldier in the Israel Defence Forces (IDF), expressed his discomfort with Badr, citing the Egyptian native’s online activities. These activities included retweeting and ‘liking’ posts that celebrated antisemitism, Hamas and acts of terrorism against Israel. According to Doe, these posts cheered the deaths of Israelis and IDF soldiers, which made him uneasy about working under Badr’s supervision. Additionally, Doe claims that Badr questioned why there were so many Israeli employees at Intel, further contributing to an uncomfortable and hostile work environment.
The lawsuit also alleges that Badr’s supervisor is complicit in these actions, making both Badr and his supervisor defendants in the case. Doe asserts that his replacement at Intel also openly expressed anti-Israel sentiments, reinforcing his belief that his termination was not a simple cost-cutting decision but rather a retaliatory action for his complaints.
Intel has not officially commented on the lawsuit. However, it did emphasise its long-standing culture of diversity and inclusion, stating that it does not tolerate hate speech of any kind.
