Meta shuts Tel Aviv office as Iranian missile attacks intensify

Amid ongoing tensions in West Asia, Meta has reportedly closed its office in Tel Aviv as the city faces continuous strikes from Iran. The report came from The Information, Meta informed its employees via an internal memo.  

The memo said, “We understand that not everyone has access to a shelter or safe room at home during these challenging times.”

The Meta office said that having a workforce of about 900 employees, the report comes at a time when Tehran has doubled down on missile strikes and drone attacks on Israel.

Meta will be providing hotel stays to the employees for those who did not have access to a bomb shelter. The hotel access is said to be up to five nights.  

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The memo also explained that the present situation has caused stress to hundreds of employees. “This has led to distressing experiences for a number of our employees, and we have been looking into ways we can support you.”

The company assured workers that it was going to support them during this time of conflict. Meta runs a research and development (R&D) office in the Israeli city that is key to the company’s operations in the country. The Tel Aviv office was established in 2013 and particularly focuses on AR/VR products for the company.

According to the report, Meta shut down the office over the weekend after a series of Iranian missile attacks on Israel, with the move coming as tensions in the region continued to escalate.  

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Tel Aviv is currently under sustained missile and drone attacks from Iran, causing casualties and significant damage to residential, commercial, and critical infrastructure across the city.  

Till now, at least 11 Israelis have been killed as the conflict entered the 12th day on Wednesday. Whereas, Iran states that over 1,300 civilians have lost their lives in the conflict.  

Meta’s move comes as technology infrastructure across the region faces growing threats. Recent Iranian strikes have also targeted data centres, including Amazon Web Services facilities in the UAE and Bahrain.