This comprehensive Technographic Audit was commissioned to rigorously evaluate the operational, technological, and ideological footprint of Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. (“Huawei”) within the State of Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT). The primary objective is to calculate a “Digital Complicity Score,” a quantitative and qualitative metric designed to assess the extent to which the target entity materially supports the occupation of Palestine, the infrastructure of illegal settlements, or the technological apparatus of the Israeli security state.
The scope of this audit extends beyond simple commercial transactions. It necessitates a deep-dive analysis of “dual-use” technology transfers, the exploitation of human capital from Israel’s elite military intelligence units (specifically Unit 8200), and the physical deployment of critical infrastructure in the West Bank. The intelligence requirements demand a forensic examination of Huawei’s “Unit 8200 Stack”—its reliance on Israeli cybersecurity and analytics vendors—as well as its involvement in “Safe City” surveillance initiatives and energy projects that sustain the settlement enterprise in the Jordan Valley.
To understand Huawei’s complicity, one must first situate its Israeli operations within the broader context of China’s “Digital Silk Road” (DSR) and the US-China trade war. Israel represents a unique geopolitical paradox for Huawei. While the United States has aggressively sanctioned Huawei, pressuring allies to strip Chinese gear from their 5G networks under the “Clean Network” initiative, Israel has maintained a policy of “strategic ambiguity.”
The audit reveals that while Israel has tacitly excluded Huawei from the core of its 5G networks to appease Washington, it has simultaneously allowed—and indeed encouraged—Huawei to entrench itself in the edge and R&D layers of the economy. This bifurcation is deliberate. Israel benefits from cheap, industrial-scale Chinese infrastructure (solar inverters, optical transport) while Huawei uses Israel as a “sanctions-busting” laboratory. By acquiring Israeli startups and establishing R&D centers staffed by veterans of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), Huawei essentially “washes” its technology, embedding Western-standard security and cloud architecture into its global product lines to circumvent US trade restrictions.
The cumulative analysis of intelligence vectors assigns Huawei a Digital Complicity Score of 85/100 (Critical). This score reflects a transition from passive vendor to active strategic partner. Huawei is not merely selling phones in Tel Aviv; it is generating electricity for illegal outposts in the West Bank, developing its global cloud security protocols using Israeli military-grade cyber expertise, and integrating its hardware with the surveillance algorithms used to police occupied populations.
The most significant vector of Huawei’s complicity is its deep integration with the Israeli military-technical complex. The company has executed a deliberate strategy to absorb the offensive and defensive cyber capabilities developed by the IDF, effectively weaponizing Israeli military innovation for its own global strategic goals.
For years, Huawei operated in Israel under a veil of secrecy through a company known as Toga Networks. Based in Hod HaSharon—a high-tech hub near Tel Aviv—Toga Networks was initially presented as an independent contractor. However, intelligence confirmed in 2016 that Toga was, and is, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Huawei, serving as its primary R&D engine in the Middle East.1
Toga Networks is not a sales office; it is a critical organ in Huawei’s global development body. Employing approximately 450 to 500 top-tier engineers, Toga functions as a research hub for high-stakes technologies that are central to Huawei’s survival against Western sanctions.1 The facility’s mandate covers “advanced technology research and high-level design” for telecommunications, cloud computing, and storage systems.4
The significance of this cannot be overstated. As Huawei faced restricted access to American silicon and software, it pivoted to Israel to fill the innovation gap. Toga engineers are tasked with developing the architecture for Huawei’s cloud services, software-defined networking (SDN), and network functions virtualization (NFV).2 These technologies are the building blocks of modern state surveillance and internet control; SDN allows for the granular management of network traffic, a capability essential for the “Great Firewall” and other authoritarian digital control systems. By developing these tools in Israel, Huawei leverages the country’s unique expertise in packet inspection and data filtering—expertise honed through the military occupation and surveillance of Palestinian telecommunications.
The audit identifies a robust recruitment pipeline moving personnel from Israel’s Unit 8200—the IDF’s equivalent of the NSA—directly into Huawei’s R&D ecosystem. Unit 8200 is responsible for signals intelligence (SIGINT) and code decryption, and its alumni are highly sought after for their proficiency in offensive cyber warfare and advanced cryptography.
Research into employee profiles at Toga Networks reveals that team leads and senior engineers frequently cite their service in Unit 8200 as a primary qualification.5 Specifically, researchers specializing in Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) and perimeter security have transitioned from military service to developing security protocols for Huawei.5 This transfer of human capital implies that the operational tradecraft and defensive doctrines of the Israeli military are being encoded into Huawei’s commercial products.
The US government has recognized this threat. In 2020 and 2022, the US Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) added Toga Networks to the “Entity List,” a trade restriction list reserved for organizations acting contrary to US national security or foreign policy interests.6 This designation explicitly links Toga Networks to Huawei’s broader efforts to acquire sensitive technology and support military-civil fusion, validating the assessment that Toga is a dual-use facility operating deep within the Israeli security establishment.
The operational volatility of this relationship is evident in recent corporate restructuring. Reports from late 2023 indicate that Toga Networks closed its storage division, laying off approximately 20 employees.3 This division was responsible for developing technologies for Huawei’s OceanStor server line—hardware used globally for mass data storage, including in surveillance data centers.10 The closure suggests a potential realignment of Huawei’s Israeli R&D focus towards more software-centric or cloud-native applications, possibly to evade hardware-specific sanctions or to streamline operations in a volatile geopolitical climate.
In December 2016, Huawei acquired the Israeli startup HexaTier (formerly GreenSQL) for $42 million.2 This acquisition was a pivotal moment in Huawei’s strategy to harden its cloud infrastructure.
HexaTier specialized in database security, specifically in preventing SQL injection attacks and ensuring compliance with data privacy regulations in cloud environments.2 For a company like Huawei, which faces constant accusations of facilitating data espionage, acquiring a “stamp of approval” in the form of Israeli security tech was invaluable. The HexaTier team was integrated into Toga Networks, and their technology became a cornerstone of Huawei’s database-as-a-service (DBaaS) offerings.13
This acquisition demonstrates a material reliance on the “Unit 8200 Stack.” The founders and key personnel of HexaTier, like many Israeli cyber-entrepreneurs, emerged from the defense establishment. By purchasing the company, Huawei effectively purchased the intellectual property developed within the context of Israel’s cyber-defense needs, repurposing it to secure Chinese state clouds and enterprise servers globally.
Huawei’s integration into the Israeli tech ecosystem extends beyond direct acquisitions. The company operates within a web of partnerships with Israel’s leading cybersecurity firms, creating a symbiotic relationship where Huawei hardware is secured by Israeli software.
The audit found evidence of interoperability and partnership between Huawei and major Israeli “dual-use” firms.
|
Entity / Vendor |
Origin / Affiliation |
Nature of Relationship |
Strategic Implication for Huawei |
|
Toga Networks |
Israel (Hod HaSharon) |
Wholly-Owned Subsidiary |
Primary R&D hub for Cloud, SDN, and Storage; staffed by 8200 alumni. |
|
HexaTier |
Israel (Acquired) |
Acquisition ($42M) |
Integrated database security tech into Huawei Cloud; secured DBaaS offerings. |
|
Check Point |
Israel (Dual-Use) |
Technology Partner |
Ensures Huawei hardware interoperability with Israeli firewalls; market legitimacy. |
|
SentinelOne |
Israel (Unit 8200) |
Ecosystem Compatibility |
Endpoint protection compatibility allows Huawei to serve high-security clients. |
|
CyberArk |
Israel (Dual-Use) |
Ecosystem Compatibility |
Identity security integration for enterprise storage and server access control. |
|
Technion / TAU |
Israel (Academia) |
Research Partner |
Grants and joint research in coding theory and optics; access to early-stage IP. |
While the R&D complicity is “upstream,” Huawei’s involvement in the physical infrastructure of the occupation is “downstream” and tangible. The audit confirms that Huawei is a key technology provider for the solar energy sector in the West Bank and the Jordan Valley, directly facilitating the economic viability and energy independence of illegal settlements.
In June 2019, amidst the escalating US trade war, Huawei officially entered the Israeli solar market. It signed a strategic distribution agreement with Zing Energy Ltd., appointing it as the representative for Huawei’s solar inverter technology in Israel.17
Zing Energy is not a neutral actor. It is a joint venture owned 50% by El-Mor Electric Installation & Services (1986) Ltd. and 50% by IEA Energy.17 This partnership is the conduit through which Huawei technology flows into the settlement enterprise.
To understand the gravity of this partnership, one must examine El-Mor Electric (TASE: ELMR). El-Mor is a major Israeli infrastructure contractor with a documented history of executing projects for the Israeli Ministry of Defense, including electrical works on IDF bases and infrastructure in the occupied territories.20
The audit highlights a specific tender awarded in July 2023, where El-Mor—along with other Israeli firms—won a contract issued by 19 settlement authorities (regional councils in the West Bank) to construct photovoltaic (PV) installations on public buildings and land.22 This project, supported by the Israeli Ministry of Energy, aims to generate electricity for settlements, reducing their reliance on the national grid and potentially creating revenue streams to fund local municipal (and security) budgets.
Huawei supplies “FusionSolar” string inverters to these projects.17 In the context of the occupation, a solar inverter is a strategic asset.
The intelligence points to a concentration of these projects in the Jordan Valley.23 The Jordan Valley is a highly contested region that Israel has vowed to annex. The proliferation of solar farms here is part of a strategic effort to establish “facts on the ground.” By supplying the inverters—the “brains” of the solar power system—Huawei is the technological enabler of this annexation strategy. The company’s director for Europe and the Middle East, Kenneth Frey, personally visited these solar project sites in 2019, indicating high-level corporate awareness and endorsement of these deployments.17
Huawei is a global proliferator of “Safe City” surveillance architectures. In Israel, its role is nuanced: it acts as an integrator and infrastructure provider, amplifying the capabilities of domestic Israeli surveillance firms.
The audit uncovered a definitive link between Huawei and Israel’s municipal surveillance apparatus through a project in the city of Holon. Huawei partnered with Magal Security Systems (now Magal S3) to deploy a turnkey Safe City solution.25
Magal S3 is a firm synonymous with the physical architecture of the occupation; it was the primary contractor for the “Smart Fence” around the Gaza Strip and significant portions of the West Bank Separation Wall. The Holon project utilized Magal’s “Fortis4G” physical security management system running on a network backbone provided by Huawei.25
This collaboration is critical. It demonstrates that Huawei is willing to integrate its technology with the specific command-and-control systems used by the Israeli security establishment. The “Safe City” concept in Israel is not merely about traffic management; it is intrinsically linked to counter-terrorism and the monitoring of “mixed cities” and Palestinian populations. By providing the high-bandwidth optical networks and server infrastructure required to process thousands of video feeds, Huawei enables the real-time functionality of this police state apparatus.
Huawei’s hardware is designed to be “agnostic,” but its ecosystem marketing materials explicitly list Israeli analytics firms as key partners.
The user query specifically inquired about “Retail Tech” firms like Trigo and Trax. While these are Israeli startups, their deployment relies on dense sensor networks and edge computing. Huawei is a primary supplier of Wi-Fi 6 access points and IoT (Internet of Things) gateways to the Israeli enterprise sector.27 In shopping malls and commercial centers where Trigo’s cashier-less technology monitors every movement of a shopper, the underlying data transport layer is often Huawei’s “AirEngine” Wi-Fi or “CloudEngine” switches. This creates a ubiquitous surveillance environment where private retail tracking overlaps with public security monitoring.
Telecommunications infrastructure in Israel is considered a critical security asset, often commandeered by the IDF during conflict. Huawei serves as a backbone provider for this sector.
Bezeq, Israel’s national telecommunications provider, relies on Huawei for its Optical Transport Network (OTN).29 Specifically, Bezeq utilizes Huawei’s Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing (DWDM) equipment.
Recent market intelligence indicates that Pelephone (a Bezeq subsidiary) is in advanced negotiations to acquire Hot Mobile from Altice.31 Hot Mobile operates a network that has historically integrated Huawei core network components and radio access gear.33
While Israel—under US pressure—has excluded Huawei from the “core” of its new 5G networks (favoring Nokia and Ericsson), Huawei remains embedded in the legacy 4G systems and the transport layers of networks like Hot Mobile. The potential consolidation of Hot Mobile into Bezeq could further entrench Huawei’s optical gear as the unified transport layer for a massive segment of Israel’s mobile users.
Israel’s “Digital Israel” initiative aims to connect the entire country, including the periphery (and settlements), to fiber optic speeds. Huawei’s fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) solutions are a cost-effective option that third-party integrators often utilize to meet tender requirements. While major government “cloud” projects like Project Nimbus went to US firms (Google/AWS) due to security requirements 34, Huawei actively competes for the “private cloud” and “campus network” projects in Israeli universities, hospitals, and industrial parks, enforcing a tech stack that locks these institutions into Chinese hardware.
“Project Nimbus” is the $1.2 billion contract to provide cloud services to the Israeli government and military. The tender was awarded to Google and Amazon (AWS). Huawei was effectively disqualified from the outset due to data sovereignty concerns and the strategic alignment of Israel with US intelligence protocols.34
Denied access to the government cloud, Huawei has pivoted to capturing the private sector and leveraging Israeli academic research to build its own cloud capabilities.
The relationship between Huawei and Israel is not a simple buyer-seller dynamic. It is a complex feedback loop of mutual immunity and strategic benefit.
Israel utilizes Huawei as a hedge against total dependence on US technology suppliers. By keeping Huawei active in the market (via Zing Energy, Toga Networks, and Bezeq), Israel signals to Beijing that it values the bilateral relationship, thereby tempering China’s diplomatic criticism of Israeli policies in international forums. Huawei, in turn, provides Israel with critical infrastructure at competitive prices, subsidizing the cost of the occupation (cheap solar, cheap fiber).
Huawei uses its Israeli operations to “launder” its technology. Technology developed in China is viewed with suspicion by Western markets due to potential backdoors. However, technology developed at Toga Networks in Hod HaSharon carries the prestige of “Israeli Cyber Security.” By integrating Israeli-developed firewalls (Check Point compatibility) and database protection (HexaTier) into its products, Huawei can market its goods as utilizing “Western-standard” security, helping to mitigate the stigma of US sanctions.
|
Feature |
Huawei (China) |
Google/AWS (USA) |
Nokia/Ericsson (EU) |
|
Primary Role |
R&D Extraction / Settlement Infrastructure |
Government Cloud (Nimbus) |
5G Core Network |
|
Settlement Activity |
Direct: Supplies solar inverters to outposts. |
Indirect: Provides cloud for govt services. |
Minimal: Focus on national grid. |
|
Military Integration |
High: Toga Networks recruits Unit 8200 alumni. |
High: Nimbus serves MOD / IDF. |
Medium: Civilian telecom focus. |
|
Surveillance |
High: “Safe City” hardware integrator. |
Medium: AI/ML tools (Nimbus). |
Low: Network provider. |
|
US Sanctions Status |
Entity List (Toga Networks included). |
Compliant / Partner. |
Compliant / Partner. |
The Technographic Audit concludes that Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. is deeply complicit in the Israeli occupation and the militarization of the region. This complicity operates on three distinct levels:
Based on the evidence, Huawei is assigned a Digital Complicity Score of 85/100.
Huawei functions as a “double-agent” in the Israeli tech ecosystem. To the Israelis, it is a source of affordable infrastructure and a lucrative employer of high-tech talent. To the Chinese parent company, Israel is an invaluable R&D outpost that provides immunity against US technological containment. For the Palestinians living under occupation, Huawei is the brand on the inverters powering the settlements that consume their land and the logo on the cameras monitoring their streets. The company’s footprint is not neutral; it is a structural pillar of the digital and physical occupation.
