Blackstone POLITICAL

Target: Blackstone Inc. Evidence reviewed through: 25 October 2026 Scope: Corporate communications, territorial operations, internal governance, institutional relationships, political financing, corporate structure and executive conduct.

Corporate Communications & Public Stance

Official statements regarding Israel and Palestine

On October 19, 2023, Blackstone chairman and CEO Stephen Schwarzman opened the company’s third-quarter earnings call by condemning the October 7 attacks in Israel and acknowledging the wider violence and loss of life across the region. He expressed concern for people in Israel, Blackstone employees there and others experiencing hardship across the region.¹

In an October 2023 public LinkedIn statement, Schwarzman described the attacks against Israeli civilians and referred to Blackstone colleagues, their families and others affected by the escalating conflict.²

An internal message from Schwarzman and Blackstone president Jonathan Gray, reported on October 12, 2023, similarly condemned the attacks, discussed employees in Israel and outlined approximately $7 million in intended humanitarian assistance and related personal contributions.³

No public evidence identified in the reviewed statements of Blackstone explicitly endorsing Israeli settlement expansion, annexation of occupied territory or a specific Israeli military operation.^{1, 2, 3}

Comparative public communications

On June 1, 2020, Schwarzman and Gray published a company statement following the murder of George Floyd, condemning racial injustice and reaffirming Blackstone’s opposition to racism.⁴

Blackstone’s December 2023 ESG report described legal assistance provided through its pro bono programme to Ukrainian citizens seeking temporary protected status in the United States.⁵

The documented October 2023 Israel statements addressed attacks against Israeli civilians and suffering throughout the region; the reviewed public materials did not establish a separately published corporate statement specifically addressing alleged Israeli violations of international humanitarian law or Palestinian civilian casualties.^{1, 2, 3}

Market framing and regional presence

On April 25, 2021, Blackstone announced the establishment of an office in Tel Aviv and the appointment of Yifat Oron to lead its local growth and technology investment efforts.⁶

Blackstone continues to identify Tel Aviv as one of its global office locations, listing an address on Ha’Arba’a Street.⁷

In a September 2022 interview, Schwarzman described Israel as an attractive market for technology investment and explained Blackstone’s interest in investing in Israeli growth companies.⁸

On December 17, 2025, Blackstone announced a strategic partnership with Israel-based Phoenix Financial involving private-credit investment strategies.⁹

Blackstone’s announcements present these activities as commercial investing, capital management, technology growth and institutional financial partnerships.^{6, 9}

Operations in Occupied or Contested Territories

Direct territorial presence

Blackstone’s current offices directory confirms an operating location in Tel Aviv, Israel.⁷

No public evidence identified in the reviewed material of a Blackstone corporate office, directly operated facility or identified branch located within an Israeli settlement in the occupied West Bank, East Jerusalem or the occupied Syrian Golan.⁷

Israeli portfolio and commercial operations

On May 16, 2024, Blackstone Growth and affiliated funds announced an agreement to acquire a majority interest in Priority Software, an Israeli provider of enterprise resource planning and related business applications; existing investors TA Associates and Fortissimo Capital were expected to retain interests.¹⁰

Blackstone described Priority Software’s customers and products across commercial sectors including retail, hospitality and education, but the announcement did not identify an Israeli military procurement contract or named settlement customer.¹⁰

Blackstone’s current biography of its Israel office head, Yifat Oron, identifies her involvement in investments in Priority Software, Cyera and Stampli.¹¹

On January 8, 2026, Cyera announced a $400 million financing round led by Blackstone, reportedly valuing the Israeli-founded data-security company at approximately $9 billion.¹²

Cyera’s founders, Yotam Segev and Tamar Bar-Ilan, previously served in Israeli military intelligence Unit 8200 and developed cloud-security capabilities during their military service, according to Cyera’s March 2022 announcement.¹³

The reporting describes Cyera’s current business as enterprise data security and does not establish that Blackstone’s investment funded an IDF procurement programme.^{12, 13}

On September 2, 2026, Blackstone was reported to have led a $27 million investment round in Israeli cybersecurity company Huskeys, at a reported company valuation of approximately $100 million.¹⁴

Huskeys founders Itai Gafni and Roy Weisfeld previously served in Unit 8200; the company’s stated commercial focus is security for AI-generated and automated internet traffic.¹⁴

September 2026 reporting also identified Blackstone as a customer of Huskeys alongside several other commercial organisations.¹⁵

No public evidence identified in these transaction reports of a direct military procurement contract between Blackstone and the IDF, or of Blackstone financing a named deployment in occupied Palestinian territory.^{12, 14, 15}

Financial-institution partnership

On December 17, 2025, Blackstone and Phoenix Financial announced that Phoenix could invest up to $5 billion across Blackstone-managed corporate-credit, real-estate-credit and asset-backed-credit strategies.⁹

The announcement identifies Phoenix as the prospective investor into Blackstone-managed strategies; it does not establish that Blackstone agreed to invest $5 billion directly in Phoenix.⁹

No specific West Bank settlement investment or Israeli military financing transaction was identified in the published partnership announcement.⁹

Legal and regulatory scrutiny

No public evidence identified from the reviewed searches establishing a Blackstone-specific entry in the UN OHCHR settlement-business database, a Blackstone-specific finding in A/HRC/59/23, or a judicial ruling against Blackstone concerning operations in occupied Palestinian territory.

The absence of a retrieved, verified database entry does not establish definitive exclusion from every relevant UN or civil-society database.

Civil society and boycott campaigns

No public evidence identified in the reviewed sources of a company-specific, officially documented BDS Movement campaign naming Blackstone and setting out a formal Blackstone-specific divestment demand.

No public evidence identified in the reviewed sources of a Blackstone corporate response to such a campaign.

Internal Governance, Content & Retail Policies

Employee relations and political expression

Blackstone’s SEC-filed Code of Ethics includes a political-contributions policy restricting specified political contributions and activities by employees, family members and certain senior advisers, particularly in relation to US state and local political offices.¹⁶

The policy describes political-activity compliance requirements and does not itself establish a restriction directed specifically against employees expressing support for Palestinians.¹⁶

No public evidence identified in the reviewed material of a Blackstone employee dismissal, disciplinary proceeding, employment lawsuit or union dispute specifically arising from pro-Palestinian political expression.

No public evidence identified of a Blackstone policy subsidising Israeli reservist salaries or granting an Israel-specific military-service benefit beyond any generally applicable statutory arrangements.

Charitable matching and employee giving

Blackstone identifies Blackstone Connects as its global employee volunteering and charitable-giving programme, operating across its international office network.¹⁷

The foundation’s public description does not provide a complete organisation-by-organisation list of eligible matching recipients or identify IDF, FIDF or settlement organisations as approved recipients.¹⁷

No public evidence identified of an established Blackstone programme matching donations to the IDF, Friends of the Israel Defense Forces or settlement organisations.

Platform and editorial policy

The commercial software and cybersecurity businesses identified in Blackstone’s Israeli investment disclosures include Priority Software, Cyera, Stampli and Huskeys.^{10, 11, 14}

No public evidence identified in the reviewed sources of Blackstone-directed content suppression, asymmetric moderation of Palestinian material or editorial intervention involving these businesses.

Retail and supply-chain practices

No public evidence identified of Blackstone issuing a corporate product-labelling policy concerning settlement-origin goods or facing a regulatory enforcement action over such labelling.

No public evidence identified of a Blackstone-controlled retail operation being ordered to withdraw falsely labelled settlement products.

Brand Heritage & State Partnerships

Commercial branding and institutional background

Blackstone describes its business as alternative investment management across asset classes including real estate, private equity, credit, infrastructure and growth equity.¹⁸

Its commercial identity is based on investment management, capital allocation and financial services rather than an expressly stated Israeli military or state-security founding mission.¹⁸

No public evidence identified of Blackstone marketing itself as having originated within the Israeli military or intelligence services.

Israeli government and military institutional connections

Blackstone’s current biography of Yifat Oron states that she previously worked for approximately three years in the Directorate of Research and Development of the Israeli Ministry of Defense, attaining the rank of lieutenant in its economics, budget and control department.¹¹

The biography identifies the ministry service as a previous appointment, preceding her later venture-capital, banking and Blackstone positions; no ongoing Israeli military employment is stated.¹¹

No public evidence identified that Oron’s historical ministry role represented a current procurement or command relationship between Blackstone and the Israeli military.¹¹

Academic and institutional affiliations

Blackstone identifies Oron as chairperson of Friends of Tel Aviv University and a board member of Israel Advanced Technology Industries and Sheba IMPACT, the commercialisation arm of Sheba Medical Center.¹¹

These positions are presented as Oron’s individual professional or institutional affiliations; the biography does not identify them as contracts between Blackstone and the Israeli government.¹¹

Cultural philanthropy

[pre-2020] In a September 2022 Jerusalem Post interview, Schwarzman discussed his $10 million donation to the National Library of Israel in 2018 and described its intended educational use for Jewish and Arab children and educators.⁸

The 2018 contribution is a historical completed philanthropic commitment; an ongoing annual donation arrangement was not established in the interview.⁸

Schwarzman also described historical support for a Jerusalem orphanage, including funding a gymnasium and changing facilities, without specifying a complete donation history or continuing payment schedule.⁸

State-sponsored public relations

No public evidence identified of Blackstone serving as an official corporate sponsor of a named Israeli government public-relations campaign promoting settlement expansion.

No public evidence identified of Blackstone receiving a formal Israeli state honour specifically for military operations or settlement support.

Lobbying, Advocacy, Financing & Logistics

Corporate political-contribution governance

Blackstone’s SEC-filed political-contribution policy describes restrictions and compliance procedures applicable to employees and specified associated persons.¹⁶

A separate SEC-hosted 2021 filing contains an earlier version of Blackstone’s political-contribution compliance policy, documenting that restrictions on specified employee political activity predated the October 2023 conflict.¹⁹

Neither reviewed policy establishes a corporate payment to an Israel-related lobbying organisation or a specific anti-BDS legislative campaign.^{16, 19}

Political committees and executive donations

A published political-financing analysis reports that Stephen Schwarzman contributed $200,000 to the RJC Victory Fund in October 2022.²⁰

The RJC Victory Fund appears in the Federal Election Commission’s public committee database, which identifies committee C00528554 and provides financial reporting for the 2022 election cycle.²¹

The donor-specific $200,000 entry was not independently established from an opened itemized FEC transaction record and should therefore remain attributed to the published political-financing analysis.^{20, 21}

No public evidence identified in the reviewed corporate filings of Blackstone itself making a direct donation to an Israeli political party or to an organisation funding settlement expansion.^{16, 19}

Corporate and foundation humanitarian commitments

On October 12, 2023, eJewishPhilanthropy reported a Blackstone internal email stating that the Blackstone Charitable Foundation would contribute $3 million to humanitarian relief following the October 7 attacks.³

The same email reported personal commitments of $1 million each from Stephen Schwarzman and Jonathan Gray, plus approximately $2 million from other senior partners, bringing the announced combined commitments to approximately $7 million.³

The email identified Magen David Adom, United Hatzalah of Israel and UJA-Federation of New York as organisations employees could consider supporting.³

The report establishes announced commitments and recommendations, but does not provide grant-by-grant confirmation of the ultimate recipients or proof of all payments.³

The report does not identify the IDF, FIDF, Israeli military procurement authorities or settlement organisations as recipients of the approximately $7 million commitment.³

Blackstone’s current charitable foundation description identifies professional mobility, education, volunteering and community support as its principal published areas of activity.¹⁷

Military-welfare and settlement financing

No public evidence identified in the reviewed materials of a verified Blackstone corporate or foundation contribution directly to the IDF, Friends of the Israel Defense Forces, JNF/KKL settlement activity, Regavim, Im Tirtzu or a named Israeli military-welfare programme.

No public evidence identified of a documented company payment earmarked for the construction or expansion of an Israeli settlement.

Crisis asset mobilisation

The October 2023 internal communication described intended financial humanitarian assistance and support for Blackstone employees affected by the conflict.³

No public evidence identified that Blackstone transferred military equipment, aircraft, intelligence systems, tactical communications infrastructure or other explicitly military logistics to Israeli armed forces during the conflict.

Constructive-notice chronology

Blackstone announced the proposed majority acquisition of Priority Software on May 16, 2024, before the International Court of Justice advisory opinion of July 19, 2024.¹⁰

The Phoenix Financial strategic partnership was announced on December 17, 2025, after both July 19, 2024 and the International Criminal Court arrest warrants issued in November 2024.⁹

The Blackstone-led Cyera financing was announced in January 2026, and the Huskeys financing was reported in September 2026; both occurred after those dates.^{12, 14}

The reviewed descriptions identify commercial investment and financial-services activities without establishing a specific settlement-development, military-procurement or armed-conflict expenditure associated with those transactions.^{9, 10, 12, 14}

Additional findings - excluded frame v_pol:ce1f8f6270fc. The Blackstone Charitable Foundation’s October 2023 humanitarian commitment has a material subsequent reporting development. On 18 October 2023, the Chronicle of Philanthropy reported $4 million in foundation grants, identifying American Friends of Magen David Adom, Friends of United Hatzalah, UJA-Federation of New York’s Israel Emergency Fund and Save the Children as recipients of $1 million each. The Chronicle described the grants as received by the organisations. This is more specific downstream reporting than the 12 October internal communication, which had announced a prospective $3 million foundation contribution without allocating funds to named recipients. The sources therefore document different figures and stages: an initially announced $3 million commitment and a subsequently reported $4 million in recipient-specific foundation grants. The reviewed records do not explain the additional $1 million or provide individual bank-transfer receipts. They do, however, provide published evidence of grant distribution beyond the original announcement.^{3, 22}

Additional findings - excluded frame v_pol:c8b7bfe3b9e5. Stephen Schwarzman’s October 2023 commitment was explicitly personal: the internal message stated that he and Jonathan Gray were each committing $1 million, separately from the Blackstone Charitable Foundation’s contribution. The stated context was humanitarian relief following the attacks of 7 October, with support directed towards people affected in Israel and the wider region. The original communication did not designate a final recipient for Schwarzman’s individual pledge. The Chronicle’s subsequent recipient-specific reporting expressly concerned foundation grants and did not attribute any of those four $1 million payments to Schwarzman’s personal commitment. Consequently, the reviewed sources establish the personal pledge but do not verify its eventual recipient, payment date, completion, renewal or termination. No documented personal disengagement or withdrawal was identified.^{3, 22}

Additional findings - excluded frame v_pol:3272cf18aa5b. Jonathan Gray’s October 2023 $1 million commitment was likewise identified as a personal pledge, with humanitarian assistance as its stated purpose. The internal message made no individual grant allocation to Magen David Adom, United Hatzalah or UJA-Federation of New York on Gray’s behalf. The Chronicle’s later report of four foundation grants does not provide evidence that Gray’s personal pledge was included in those distributions. Independent reporting by Inside Philanthropy, published on 18 October and subsequently updated in November 2023, repeated the distinction between foundation and individual commitments but supplied no Gray-specific payment receipt or final beneficiary. The documented result remains a publicly reported personal commitment; its subsequent execution and continuing status were not independently established in the reviewed records. No concrete evidence of withdrawal or disengagement was identified.^{3, 22, 23}

Additional findings - excluded frame v_pol:836310dc2e90. The October 2023 reference to Magen David Adom originated in an employee-directed recommendation to consider personal charitable giving. The communication named Magen David Adom, United Hatzalah of Israel and UJA-Federation of New York as organisations employees could consider supporting; it did not establish an employee donation, an employee-matching arrangement or a corporate allocation to any one of those organisations. The Chronicle subsequently reported a separate $1 million foundation grant to American Friends of Magen David Adom, alongside three other grants. That subsequent foundation grant is evidence of institutional funding and must be distinguished from the earlier employee-giving recommendation. Neither source identifies employee participation totals, an ongoing employee-giving arrangement, a military earmark, or a later decision to discontinue recommending Magen David Adom.^{3, 22}

Additional findings - excluded frames v_pol:ce1f8f6270fc, v_pol:c8b7bfe3b9e5, v_pol:3272cf18aa5b and v_pol:836310dc2e90. October 2023–October 2026 - no public evidence identified in the reviewed original internal-email reporting, subsequent philanthropic-grant reporting and independent philanthropic coverage establishing a formal reversal of the Foundation’s humanitarian commitments, cancellation of either executive’s personal pledge, withdrawal of the October 2023 employee-giving recommendations or a documented termination of related charitable relationships. The available evidence establishes discrete October 2023 commitments and subsequent reported foundation grants. It does not independently establish recurring annual support, continuing payments through 2026 or the present status of every individual commitment.^{3, 22, 23}

Corporate Structure & Primary Mission

Corporate mandate

Blackstone identifies itself as an alternative asset manager with investment businesses in private equity, real estate, credit, infrastructure, growth equity and other asset classes.¹⁸

Its publicly described mission is centred on generating investment returns and supporting portfolio companies through capital, expertise and business development.¹⁸

No public evidence identified in the reviewed corporate material that Blackstone’s foundational corporate mission explicitly requires supporting Israeli state policy, military activity or settlement infrastructure.¹⁸

Leadership and governance

Stephen Schwarzman is identified by Blackstone as its chairman, CEO and co-founder, with involvement in the firm’s development since 1985.¹⁸

Blackstone identifies Jonathan Gray as president, COO and a member of its board of directors and principal investment committees.²⁴

Group-level Israel involvement

Blackstone’s Israeli investment presence includes its Tel Aviv office, investments undertaken through growth-equity and related vehicles, and a strategic relationship with Phoenix Financial.^{6, 9, 11}

Blackstone’s 2024 Priority Software announcement expressly attributes the proposed majority acquisition to Blackstone Growth and affiliated funds.¹⁰

Blackstone’s December 2025 Phoenix announcement describes Phoenix as investing in strategies managed by Blackstone.⁹

These disclosures establish different legal and financial relationships, including Blackstone-managed investment activity, corporate office operations and an external institutional investor partnership.^{6, 9, 10}

No specific state-held golden share, Israeli government controlling equity interest or foundational Israeli government ownership mandate was identified in the reviewed documents.

Portfolio attribution

Blackstone’s current biography of Yifat Oron identifies the firm’s participation in investments involving Cyera, Priority Software and Stampli.¹¹

The identified transactions establish Blackstone investment involvement, but the reviewed announcements do not document a transaction-specific instruction from Blackstone to supply Israeli armed forces or operate within settlements.^{10, 11, 12}

Executive & Leadership Footprint

Stephen A. Schwarzman - chairman, CEO and co-founder

Blackstone identifies Schwarzman as chairman, CEO and co-founder, making him a senior corporate principal directly associated with the firm’s public identity and strategy.¹⁸

On October 19, 2023, Schwarzman publicly addressed the October 7 attacks and regional violence during Blackstone’s earnings call.¹

He also published a personal LinkedIn statement regarding the attacks, Blackstone colleagues in Israel and people affected by the conflict.²

In October 2023, Schwarzman reportedly pledged $1 million personally towards humanitarian relief connected to the attacks and ensuing crisis.³

[pre-2020] Schwarzman donated $10 million to the National Library of Israel in 2018, as discussed in his September 2022 interview; this was historical educational philanthropy, with no continuing annual obligation established.⁸

He also described earlier donations supporting a Jerusalem orphanage, including improvements to its facilities, but the interview did not establish the dates or cumulative value of all such contributions.⁸

A published political-financing analysis reports a $200,000 contribution from Schwarzman to the RJC Victory Fund in October 2022; independent itemized transaction verification remains outstanding.²⁰

No public evidence identified in the reviewed material of a verified Schwarzman personal donation directly to FIDF, Israeli military procurement, a named settlement organisation or an Israeli reservist-supply programme.

Jonathan Gray - president, COO and director

Blackstone identifies Gray as president, COO, director and member of its principal investment committees.²⁴

Gray joined Schwarzman in the reported October 2023 employee communication describing humanitarian commitments following the October 7 attacks.³

The communication reported Gray’s personal $1 million pledge, separately from the foundation’s $3 million commitment.³

Gray also joined Schwarzman in Blackstone’s June 2020 public statement condemning racial injustice in the United States.⁴

No public evidence identified in the reviewed material of a confirmed Gray personal payment directly to an Israeli military-welfare fund or settlement organisation.

Yifat Oron - Israeli operations and institutional affiliations

Blackstone identifies Yifat Oron as a senior managing director and head of its Tel Aviv office.¹¹

She joined Blackstone in 2021 following senior roles in Israeli banking and venture capital.^{6, 11}

Her historical Israeli Ministry of Defense employment included service in its research-and-development directorate, where she attained lieutenant rank.¹¹

The company identifies her current institutional roles as chairperson of Friends of Tel Aviv University and board member of Israel Advanced Technology Industries and Sheba IMPACT.¹¹

Blackstone credits Oron with involvement in investments in Priority Software, Cyera and Stampli.¹¹

No public evidence identified that she currently holds an Israeli military command position or directs a Blackstone-funded settlement programme.

Military backgrounds within portfolio-company leadership

Cyera’s March 2022 announcement identifies founders Yotam Segev and Tamar Bar-Ilan as former members of Israeli military intelligence Unit 8200.¹³

September 2026 reporting identifies Huskeys founders Itai Gafni and Roy Weisfeld as former Unit 8200 personnel.¹⁴

These are backgrounds of founders of companies receiving Blackstone investment; the cited reports do not establish that the individuals hold current IDF leadership positions or that their companies have identified military contracts funded by Blackstone.^{13, 14}

Executive connections to advocacy and state-aligned institutions

Schwarzman’s reported 2022 RJC Victory Fund contribution documents a reported personal political-financing connection, subject to itemized FEC verification.²⁰

Oron’s declared institutional affiliations include Friends of Tel Aviv University, Israel Advanced Technology Industries and Sheba IMPACT.¹¹

No public evidence identified in the reviewed records that Schwarzman, Gray or Oron held a leadership position in a named organisation directly coordinating Israeli settlement expansion.

No public evidence identified of verified post-November 2024 personal donations by these executives to the IDF, FIDF or a named settlement organisation.

On 7 May 2025, Tel Aviv University (TAU) announced that the Gray Foundation, led by Blackstone President and COO Jonathan Gray and his wife Mindy Gray, had donated $125 million to its Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences. TAU described the contribution as the largest donation in its history and the third-largest to an Israeli academic institution. The university stated that the funding would expand medical student enrolment, support advanced medical research, improve clinical training and increase educational access for underrepresented communities. This establishes a substantial, publicly documented philanthropic commitment by Blackstone’s president and his family foundation to an Israeli academic institution. The university attributed the donation to the Gray Foundation, rather than Blackstone Inc. or a Blackstone-managed investment fund.²⁵

TAU’s 8 May 2025 inauguration announcement provided further details of the $125 million commitment. The planned expenditure included a new 600-bed student dormitory prioritising disadvantaged students, advanced teaching and research facilities, modernisation of the Schools of Medicine and Dentistry, scholarships for underrepresented groups, faculty recruitment and retention, BRCA-related cancer research and collaboration, and a memorial for victims of the 7 October 2023 attacks. TAU projected approximately 25% growth in incoming medical students and 20% growth in enrolment across the wider Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences. The university also identified its network of 18 affiliated hospitals as part of the institutional healthcare infrastructure that would benefit from expanded medical education and research. These are documented funding objectives and institutional projections; the announcements do not independently establish that every planned facility or programme had subsequently been completed.²⁶

On 8 May 2025, Jonathan and Mindy Gray personally attended the inauguration of the Gray Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences at Tel Aviv University alongside Israeli President Isaac Herzog and First Lady Michal Herzog. TAU’s published photograph identifies the Grays and the Herzog couple participating in the ribbon-cutting ceremony with university president Prof. Ariel Porat, medical dean Prof. Karen Avraham and Board of Governors chairwoman Dafna Meitar-Nechmad. The ceremony also included university rector Prof. Mark Shtaif and other academic leaders, governors and university supporters. The event provides direct evidence of Blackstone’s president participating in a public Israeli institutional ceremony alongside the country’s head of state in May 2025.²⁶

At the inauguration, Jon and Mindy Gray publicly associated their contribution with supporting Israel following the attacks of 7 October 2023. They described having sought a meaningful way to contribute to Israel after those events and presented investment in medical education and research as a means of supporting recovery and healthcare development. President Isaac Herzog thanked the Grays for their support at a critical moment in Israel’s history, characterising the donation as an expression of solidarity and optimism. TAU President Ariel Porat explicitly described the contribution as a vote of confidence extending beyond the university and Israeli science to the State of Israel and its future. These statements document the political and national-solidarity framing publicly attached to the gift by the donors, Israel’s president and the university’s leadership. They do not establish an endorsement by Gray or Blackstone of a specific Israeli military operation, settlement policy or territorial claim.²⁶

In a separate letter published on 8 May 2025, TAU President Ariel Porat disclosed that he had first approached Jonathan Gray approximately six months earlier during a meeting in New York, after which Jonathan and Mindy visited the university and decided to support its medical faculty. Porat expressly attributed the donation to the Grays’ attachment to Israel and the Jewish people and their desire to assist Israeli society following 7 October 2023. He also thanked Yifat Oron, identified in the letter as President of the Israeli Friends of Tel Aviv University, for providing support and guidance in bringing the donation to fruition. Other acknowledged contributors included American Friends of Tel Aviv University’s Julie Lipsett-Singer, TAU Governor Danny Gillerman, Dean Karen Avraham and senior university administrators. This establishes Oron’s publicly acknowledged involvement in an institutional philanthropic initiative associated with Blackstone’s president, without establishing that she represented Blackstone in a corporate capacity or that the company financed the donation.²⁷

Additional findings - excluded frame v_pol:a9f4bea2922c. Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, the law firm representing the Gray Foundation, confirmed on 7 May 2025 that the Foundation’s $125 million grant was made to American Friends of Tel Aviv University for the benefit of Tel Aviv University’s Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences. This identifies an intermediary grant recipient and provides independent transaction-level corroboration of the publicly announced gift. The firm described the Foundation’s established philanthropic priorities as research, treatment and awareness relating to inherited BRCA mutations, together with opportunities for low-income young people in New York City. The TAU grant therefore has a documented connection to the Foundation’s pre-existing medical research mission, alongside the Israeli institutional and national-solidarity objectives recorded in TAU’s announcements. The law firm’s account attributes the grant to the Gray Foundation and does not identify Blackstone Inc. as the donor.²⁸

Additional findings - excluded frame v_pol:a9f4bea2922c. TAU’s Hebrew-language announcement of 8 May 2025 expressly characterised the Gray contribution as strengthening Israel’s national resilience and advancing the country’s healthcare system. A separate university statement on 21 May 2025 identified the proposed beneficiaries more broadly: medical and dental students, graduate researchers, academic faculty, affiliated hospitals, international researchers and underrepresented communities. Vice Dean Rina Arbesfeld described plans for shared biomedical research infrastructure, additional research recruitment, expanded English-language graduate education and improved support for international students. TAU explicitly identified Jewish, Arab, Christian, Muslim, Israeli and international communities among those it intended to include. These records substantiate both the national healthcare objective and the stated intention to broaden educational access; they do not establish a dedicated military purpose or identify military organisations as grant beneficiaries.^{29, 30}

Additional findings - excluded frame v_pol:a9f4bea2922c. The university’s continued use of the Gray name provides independently observable evidence that the naming component of the contribution was implemented and remained active in 2026. TAU’s official Gray School of Medicine webpage carried the Gray Faculty of Medical & Health Sciences designation alongside dated faculty news from August and September 2026, including research awards, international collaboration and faculty activities. The institutional naming therefore remained publicly operative more than a year after the May 2025 inauguration. This establishes a continuing named institutional affiliation, without independently proving that all construction, recruitment or enrolment targets funded by the original donation have been achieved.³¹

Additional findings - excluded frame v_pol:a9f4bea2922c. TAU has also published subsequent Gray-named scholarship opportunities. Its Gray Scholarships webpage lists awards for academic excellence, research excellence and community leadership in medicine. A separate scholarship document establishes that applications opened on 21 October 2025, with a December deadline and provisions for awards of NIS 5,000 or NIS 10,000 to selected students, plus project allowances of up to NIS 2,000. The documentation provides concrete evidence of scholarship programme administration following the May 2025 gift. It does not independently identify actual award recipients, confirm individual disbursements or establish that those scholarship opportunities were financed specifically from the $125 million grant rather than another university funding source.^{32, 33}

Additional findings - excluded frame v_pol:a9f4bea2922c. May 2025–October 2026 - no public evidence identified in the reviewed university announcements, subsequent faculty webpages, scholarship documentation and grant counsel’s statement establishing completion of the proposed 600-bed dormitory, completion of the planned biomedical facilities, achievement of the projected 25% increase in incoming medical students, achievement of the projected 20% wider faculty enrolment growth, or the full disbursement schedule for the $125 million grant. No announcement of cancellation, withdrawal, repayment or cessation of the Gray Faculty naming arrangement was identified in those materials. The verified downstream results are the announced grant transaction, completed faculty naming and subsequent operation of Gray-named academic programmes; broader capital and enrolment outcomes remain insufficiently documented.^{28, 30, 31, 32, 33}