Etihad Airways ECONOMIC

Target: Etihad Airways Research date: 22 October 2026 Geographic scope: Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem and the occupied Golan Heights. Evidence scope: Public corporate disclosures, government statements, trade reporting, airline-industry publications and commercial intermediary records.

Supply Chain & Sourcing Relationships

Direct supplier relationships

Etihad Cargo announced on 5 April 2021 that it had appointed Rom Top Aviation Ltd as its general sales agent in Israel, ahead of the launch of scheduled Abu Dhabi–Tel Aviv flights. Etihad identified potential demand for its specialised PharmaLife and FreshForward cargo services, including shipments associated with pharmaceutical and fresh-food supply chains.¹

Rom Top Aviation’s corporate website identifies Etihad Cargo among the airlines for which it handles cargo sales and operations. Rom Top describes its service capabilities as including pharmaceutical products, perishables, food products and other commercial cargo.²

The available announcements establish cargo-logistics services and marketing capabilities. No public evidence identified of direct agricultural procurement agreements between Etihad Airways and Mehadrin, Hadiklaim, Galilee Export, Agrexco successors or another named Israeli agricultural exporter.

Israeli commercial intermediaries

Maman Group identifies Etihad Airways as a client of Maman Aviation, its Israeli international-airline representation and marketing business. Maman Aviation describes relationships with approximately 400 travel agencies and 50 tourism wholesalers in Israel.³

Maman Aviation’s own website identifies Assaf Tzur as an account manager responsible for Etihad Airways’ client portfolio and group sales, supporting the existence of a local commercial distribution function.⁴

Rom Top Aviation describes itself as a privately owned company established in 2003 within the Krief Group. Its listed Israeli facilities include a head office in Or Yehuda and an airport office at Ben Gurion International Airport.²

Cargo operations and commercial trade

On 11 August 2024, Israeli logistics reporting described an additional Etihad wide-body cargo operation scheduled for 13 August between Ben Gurion Airport and Abu Dhabi. The report identified Moti Arbel of ACI as an executive involved in marketing Etihad Cargo in Israel and described the flight as serving Israeli importers and exporters.⁵

The August 2024 cargo operation occurred after the International Court of Justice’s advisory opinion of 19 July 2024 and demonstrates continued commercial freight activity involving Israel during that period.⁵

Importer of record

No public evidence identified that Etihad Airways maintains a wholly owned Israeli importing subsidiary, controls a dedicated importer of record or acts as the importer of record for Israeli agricultural goods.

The identified Maman Aviation and Rom Top entities are commercial service providers. Their corporate descriptions do not establish that they are Etihad-owned subsidiaries.^{2, 3}

Seasonal sourcing

No public evidence identified of recurring Etihad procurement of Israeli dates, citrus, avocados, herbs, potatoes or other agricultural commodities during December–April or other seasonal windows.

Third-party and indirect sourcing

The airline’s Israeli cargo agency structure provides a documented channel through which third-party commercial consignments can access Etihad’s international air-freight services.^{1, 2}

No public evidence identified that specific Israeli agricultural products, settlement-origin commodities or white-label goods were purchased by Etihad Airways through this arrangement.

Product Origin, Labeling & Regulatory Compliance

Settlement-origin products

No public evidence identified of Etihad Airways purchasing, retailing, relabelling or distributing goods verified as originating in Israeli settlements in the West Bank, East Jerusalem or occupied Golan Heights.

Product and cargo origin

The 2021 Rom Top appointment announcement identified pharmaceuticals and fresh food as anticipated cargo categories but did not establish individual consignments, producers, customs origins or settlement locations.¹

The August 2024 special cargo-flight report concerned capacity for Israeli importers and exporters but did not identify individual goods or their geographical production sites.⁵

Country-of-origin labelling

No public evidence identified of regulatory enforcement proceedings, customs penalties or official findings against Etihad Airways concerning the mislabelling of settlement-origin agricultural products.

Corporate sourcing and labelling policies

No public evidence identified of a publicly stated Etihad policy specifically regulating procurement or labelling of goods produced in Israeli settlements.

Regulatory compliance

No public evidence identified of a DEFRA or comparable customs-authority finding that Etihad Airways had incorrectly declared settlement-origin products as originating in Israel.

Indirect handling

Etihad Cargo’s documented freight services could transport commodities of multiple origins, but the available corporate and industry records do not identify settlement-origin consignments handled by the airline.^{1, 2}

Investment, Capital & Financial Exposure

Foreign direct investment

In October 2022, the Abu Dhabi Supreme Council for Financial and Economic Affairs transferred full ownership of Etihad Aviation Group to ADQ, an Abu Dhabi-based investment and holding company. The transfer placed Etihad within ADQ’s aviation portfolio.⁶

No public evidence identified of Etihad Airways acquiring an Israeli factory, data centre, logistics warehouse, airline, airport operator or other controlling equity investment in Israel or the occupied territories.

Commercial cooperation with EL AL Israel Airlines

Etihad Airways and EL AL entered a memorandum of understanding in November 2020 covering potential codeshare arrangements, reciprocal loyalty benefits, cargo, engineering, destination management and training cooperation.⁷

On 1 July 2021, the airlines announced the launch of their codeshare and frequent-flyer partnership, with services beginning on 18 July 2021. EL AL’s LY designator was to be added to Etihad-operated flights between Tel Aviv and Abu Dhabi and subsequent international connections.⁸

Contemporaneous independent coverage described the codeshare as EL AL’s first commercial cooperation of this kind with an airline from a predominantly Arab country following the 2020 normalization agreements.⁹

The arrangement created a commercial distribution and passenger-connectivity relationship between the airlines. No public evidence identified that the agreement involved Etihad purchasing EL AL shares or obtaining control of EL AL.^{10, 11}

Research, development and innovation

On 30 November 2020, reporting identified Etihad Airways as a partner in OnBoard, an Israeli travel-technology accelerator announced by Arieli Capital. Other announced partners included Booking.com and Amadeus. The programme was described as having approximately NIS 10 million, or US$3 million, in planned resources.¹²

The announced arrangements included startup selection, mentoring, commercial introductions and possible future investment opportunities. No public evidence identified of a completed Etihad equity investment arising from the programme or an Etihad-owned research facility in Israel.¹²

Acquired Israeli subsidiaries

No public evidence identified of Etihad Airways acquiring or controlling an Israeli operating company.

No verified Israeli subsidiary acquisition date, purchase price, current ownership percentage, manufacturing location, employee count or subsidiary revenue was identified.

No public evidence identified of an Etihad-controlled Israeli subsidiary supplying military equipment, operating settlement infrastructure or producing goods in occupied territory.

Parent and beneficial ownership

Etihad’s ownership structure is rooted in Abu Dhabi state ownership. An official Abu Dhabi tourism publication records that the airline was established by Emiri Decree in July 2003 and originally owned by the Government of Abu Dhabi.¹³

The October 2022 transfer vested full ownership of Etihad Aviation Group in ADQ. The cited government announcement does not identify an Israeli shareholder or Israeli beneficial controller.⁶

No public evidence identified of an Israeli individual, company or investment fund holding a controlling stake in Etihad Airways.

Portfolio and fund exposure

No public evidence identified of Etihad Airways directly holding material positions in Israeli sovereign bonds, Israel Bonds, Israeli-focused investment funds or publicly listed Israeli companies.

No public evidence identified establishing a direct Etihad Airways investment in an Israeli arms manufacturer or OHCHR-listed settlement company.

No verified transaction-level evidence was identified concerning separate Israeli equity or bond investments made by ADQ that could be attributed specifically to Etihad.

Financing the Israeli state

No public evidence identified of Etihad Airways acting as an underwriter, arranger, distributor or guarantor of Israeli sovereign debt or Israel Bonds.

No public evidence identified of direct Etihad lending to Israeli defence manufacturers, settlement enterprises or Israeli state agencies.

Controlling principals

No public evidence identified of a material personal or family-office investment in an Israeli company by an Etihad founder, current controlling shareholder or identified senior executive that can be substantiated as relevant to this audit.

ADQ investment in Israeli cultivated-meat company Aleph Farms - completed transaction. On 7 July 2021, Rehovot-based Aleph Farms announced completion of a US$105 million Series B financing round jointly led by L Catterton’s Growth Fund and DisruptAD, ADQ’s venture investment platform. Aleph Farms’ own announcement identifies DisruptAD as a lead investor, while independent food-industry reporting confirms the completed financing. This establishes an executed investment by an ADQ-affiliated investment platform in an Israeli operating company. The US$105 million represents the total financing round, not DisruptAD’s individual contribution. Neither the precise ADQ-affiliated investment amount nor its resulting equity percentage was publicly disclosed. The investment preceded ADQ’s acquisition of Etihad Aviation Group in October 2022 by approximately 15 months; it therefore establishes a pre-existing parent-group Israeli investment relationship, rather than a transaction undertaken during Etihad’s ownership by ADQ.^{14, 15, 16}

Aleph Farms - subsequent financing and continuing exposure. On 25 March 2025, Aleph Farms confirmed that it had raised US$29 million, comprising US$22 million previously invested through a simple agreement for future equity (SAFE) that had converted and US$7 million contributed by existing investors in the first closing of an ongoing financing round. The company’s chief executive said the capital would support expanded production at its Israeli pilot facility and international manufacturing development. The reporting explicitly continued to identify DisruptAD among Aleph Farms’ financial backers, establishing evidence of an ADQ-affiliated investor relationship during Etihad’s ADQ ownership period. It does not identify DisruptAD individually among the investors contributing the new US$7 million, establish that DisruptAD provided any of the US$22 million SAFE financing, or quantify its holding after conversion and dilution. The additional US$10–15 million under consideration was prospective fundraising rather than completed financing. Accordingly, the 2025 evidence supports an established historical investment relationship and reported continuing investor association, but cannot independently establish a fresh ADQ investment amount or confirmed shareholding percentage.¹⁷

ADQ’s proposed acquisition of Phoenix Holdings - transaction proposed but terminated. On 13 December 2022, ADQ and other prospective investors agreed a memorandum of understanding concerning the acquisition of approximately 25% of Israeli insurance and financial-services company Phoenix Holdings from Centerbridge Partners and Gallatin Point Capital. The proposed consideration was approximately NIS 2.3 billion, equivalent to roughly US$680 million at the time. The acquisition required Israeli regulatory approvals, including approval from the Capital Market Authority. Although contemporary headlines described ADQ as acquiring control, the signed memorandum and outstanding approvals establish a conditional proposed acquisition rather than a completed transfer of shares or financing payment.¹⁸

Phoenix Holdings - definitive cancellation and residual minority transaction. On 23 July 2023, Phoenix disclosed that the parties had mutually terminated the proposed controlling-interest transaction because of potential regulatory restrictions affecting consortium members’ ability to undertake further significant investments in Israel. The NIS 2.3 billion acquisition therefore cannot be counted as completed ADQ investment, continuing control or realised capital exposure. Subsequent reporting on 16 August 2023 identified a separate executed purchase of approximately 2% of Phoenix by an investor described only as being from the UAE, for NIS 184 million. The seller was the existing controlling shareholder group. The publication did not establish that the purchaser was ADQ, DisruptAD or another ADQ-controlled entity. This executed minority acquisition establishes identifiable UAE-origin investment in Phoenix but cannot presently be attributed to Etihad’s parent group. Its continuing ownership and any subsequent exit likewise remain unverified.^{19, 20, 21}

ADQ-period investment scale and comparison with V=3.5. The completed US$105 million Aleph Farms financing round provides a confirmed transaction-scale anchor, but the allocation to DisruptAD is undisclosed. The investment began in July 2021, while the Etihad–ADQ ownership overlap began in October 2022. The March 2025 reporting provides evidence that DisruptAD remained identified as an investor more than three years after the original investment and approximately two years and five months into Etihad’s ADQ ownership period. However, it does not verify the amount still invested or the exact holding duration. The Phoenix acquisition’s NIS 2.3 billion proposed value must be excluded from executed-investment scale because the transaction was cancelled. The separately executed NIS 184 million minority investment cannot be attributed to ADQ. Consequently, Aleph Farms provides the strongest established parent-level Israeli capital relationship for independent comparison with the current passenger-service scenario’s V=3.5. Its exact financial scale and post-2025 continuity remain insufficiently disclosed to substantiate a numerical conclusion that the parent-investment scenario exceeds V=3.5.^{14, 17, 18, 19, 20}

L’IMAD-period Israeli investment and financing exposure - 30 January to 23 October 2026. No public evidence identified of a new, separately executed Israeli equity acquisition, Israeli sovereign-debt subscription, Israeli corporate lending transaction or Israeli-focused fund commitment directly attributable to L’IMAD during this period. Searches examined the official consolidation announcement, its investment mandate, publicly described portfolio companies and the previously identified ADQ-associated Aleph Farms and Phoenix transactions. The consolidation creates a potential route for existing ADQ portfolio exposure to continue under L’IMAD, but the government announcement does not provide an asset-level schedule identifying Aleph Farms, DisruptAD’s underlying investments, Phoenix shares or their valuations. Accordingly, no independently quantified L’IMAD-period Israeli investment scenario can presently be demonstrated to exceed the passenger-service scenario’s V=3.5.^{17, 20, 22, 23}

Operational Presence & Market Activity

Initial operational establishment

On 6 April 2021, Etihad Airways inaugurated scheduled Abu Dhabi–Tel Aviv service, operating flight EY598 to Ben Gurion International Airport. The inaugural flight carried a UAE diplomatic and economic delegation.²⁴

The UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed that Ambassador Mohamed Mahmoud Al Khaja travelled on the inaugural flight alongside other representatives involved in developing commercial and diplomatic relations between the two countries.²⁵

The flight marked the establishment of regular commercial passenger connectivity between Etihad’s Abu Dhabi hub and Israel.²⁴

Commercial activity before scheduled services

Israeli airline historical records identify a November 2020 memorandum between EL AL and Etihad concerning future cooperation, followed by the July 2021 codeshare launch.²⁶

Aviation reporting from July 2021 confirmed that EL AL intended to market Etihad-operated flights under its own airline code, expanding its distribution of travel between Tel Aviv, Abu Dhabi and international destinations.²⁷

Continued operations during the 2023–2024 conflict

Associated Press reported on 15 November 2024 that Etihad continued operating daily Tel Aviv services while several other international airlines suspended or repeatedly interrupted their Israel routes. Etihad stated that it was monitoring regional conditions while maintaining services subject to aviation safety requirements.²⁸

The documented November 2024 operations establish continued commercial passenger activity after 19 July 2024. The November 2024 report predates the International Criminal Court arrest warrants issued on 21 November 2024; separate October 2026 evidence establishes continued operations after those warrants.^{28, 29}

Israeli-market expansion during 2026

Israeli reporting in 2026 described plans to increase Tel Aviv–Abu Dhabi services to as many as six daily flights, equivalent to 42 weekly departures. The account attributed more than 100,000 passengers on the route during the first quarter of 2026 to company data, with approximately 90% average occupancy.³⁰

The June 2026 expansion report described Israel as one of Etihad’s most intensively served markets by weekly flight frequency. The figures represent reported company data and announced schedules, and do not independently establish that every scheduled flight operated.³⁰

Confirmed current operation

On 5 October 2026, the UAE General Civil Aviation Authority confirmed that Etihad Airways continued operating scheduled flights to Tel Aviv. The announcement concerned alternative passenger-transport arrangements following disruptions to another UAE carrier’s services.²⁹

The 5 October 2026 government statement provides direct evidence that Etihad’s Israeli passenger operations continued after July and November 2024 and remained active in October 2026.²⁹

Physical footprint and local representation

Maman Aviation identifies Etihad among the international airlines it represents in Israel and describes its established local passenger-sales network.³

Rom Top Aviation identifies Etihad Cargo as a client and lists operational addresses in Or Yehuda and at Ben Gurion Airport.²

These records document third-party commercial representation and access to Israeli airport infrastructure. No public evidence identified of an Etihad-owned airport terminal, warehouse, headquarters building or manufacturing property in Israel.

Employment and tax registration

No public evidence identified of the precise number of Etihad Airways employees directly employed under Israeli employment contracts.

No public evidence identified of Etihad Airways’ Israeli corporate income-tax payments, VAT registration number or permanent-establishment tax filings.

Market positioning

In April 2021, Abu Dhabi government reporting described the Tel Aviv service as supporting the development of diplomatic, commercial and tourism relationships between Israel and the UAE.²⁴

Maman Aviation’s continuing representation and the reported 2026 route-frequency expansion document substantial commercial attention to Israeli passenger distribution and onward international travel.^{3, 30}

Settlement-related operations

No public evidence identified of Etihad-operated scheduled passenger services to an airport located inside an Israeli settlement in the occupied West Bank or Golan Heights.

No public evidence identified of an Etihad-owned office, commercial facility, cargo warehouse or distribution centre located in an Israeli settlement.

No public evidence identified of a specific Etihad cargo shipment to a named settlement, settlement industrial zone or settlement-based company.

Corporate Structure & Foundational Ties

Founding and incorporation

Etihad Airways was established in Abu Dhabi in July 2003 by Emiri Decree as the emirate’s national airline.¹³

Abu Dhabi government historical records independently identify the establishment of Etihad Airways in 2003 as part of the emirate’s aviation development.³¹

No public evidence identified that Etihad Airways was founded, originally incorporated or originally headquartered in Israel.

Headquarters and domicile

The airline’s founding and state-ownership records establish Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, as its corporate home and principal aviation hub.^{13, 6}

No public evidence identified of Etihad Airways having an Israeli legal domicile, Israeli principal headquarters or legacy Israeli headquarters.

Israeli-Nexus Floor - incorporation

The available founding records identify Etihad as an Abu Dhabi airline created in 2003, rather than an Israeli-founded enterprise.^{13, 31}

Israeli-Nexus Floor - headquarters

The airline’s ownership and founding documentation identifies Abu Dhabi as its institutional base, with no verified Israeli headquarters.^{6, 13}

Israeli-Nexus Floor - tax residency and Preferred Technology Enterprise status

No public evidence identified of Israeli corporate tax residency or Israeli Preferred Technology Enterprise status held by Etihad Airways.

Israeli-Nexus Floor - beneficial control

The documented 2022 ownership transfer to ADQ establishes a UAE holding-company ownership structure. No Israeli controlling stake was identified in the government announcement.⁶

State and institutional linkages

The Abu Dhabi government’s 18 October 2022 announcement states that full ownership of Etihad Aviation Group transferred to ADQ through a decision of the Supreme Council for Financial and Economic Affairs.⁶

The stated purpose included strengthening Abu Dhabi’s position as a global aviation hub and integrating aviation businesses within ADQ’s portfolio.⁶

The airline also participated in the 6 April 2021 inaugural UAE diplomatic and economic delegation to Israel, as confirmed by the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs.²⁵

No public evidence identified of Israeli government equity ownership of Etihad Airways, an Israeli government-appointed Etihad director or a governance right granting Israel control over airline operations.

Structural governance

No public evidence identified of Israeli golden shares, Israeli government veto rights, Israeli founder-share restrictions or charter provisions linking Etihad’s corporate mission to the Israeli state.

EL AL relationship

The 2021 codeshare agreement was a commercial airline partnership involving reciprocal passenger and loyalty benefits. Contemporary coverage does not identify a merger, acquisition or change of corporate control resulting from the agreement.^{32, 33}

Controlling-principal and group attribution

The documented ownership chain establishes Etihad Aviation Group within ADQ’s Abu Dhabi investment portfolio from October 2022.⁶

No public evidence identified of an Israeli beneficial owner controlling Etihad Airways through a founder vehicle, family office, holding company or affiliated investment fund.

No substantiated Israeli defence-industry or settlement-related personal investment by the airline’s controlling principals was established.

Etihad’s integration into ADQ - ownership and operational consolidation. The Abu Dhabi government’s 18 October 2022 announcement confirms that full ownership of Etihad Aviation Group transferred to ADQ. It also establishes that Etihad’s ancillary businesses had already been transferred into ADQ earlier in 2022 to form an integrated aviation-support-services company. The government’s stated objective was to strengthen Abu Dhabi’s aviation hub through integrated and competitive aviation services. These facts provide affirmative evidence of both controlling ownership and coordinated operational restructuring. They support treating ADQ as an economically relevant parent actor when assessing Principle 4 and group proximity. The announcement does not establish that Etihad individually approved, financed or benefited from ADQ’s separate Israeli portfolio investments.⁶

Operational and capital integration - additional corporate evidence. ADQ’s aviation restructuring extended beyond the formal ownership transfer. ADQ’s disclosed investment activity identifies a transaction completed on 1 May 2024 through which Abu Dhabi Aviation acquired interests in Etihad Airways Engineering, Advanced Military Maintenance Repair and Overhaul Centre and Global Aerospace Logistics as part of an exchange involving ADQ-controlled aviation assets. The transaction demonstrates that Etihad-associated support businesses participated in broader ADQ-directed corporate restructuring. This strengthens the evidence for operational and capital integration within the wider aviation portfolio, while providing no evidence that the specific Israeli investments identified above were financed by Etihad’s operating cash flows.³⁴

January 2026 restructuring - L’IMAD becomes the superior parent. On 30 January 2026, Abu Dhabi’s Supreme Council for Financial and Economic Affairs announced a resolution consolidating ADQ’s assets and investments with those of L’IMAD Holding under L’IMAD. The government expressly included Etihad Airways among the principal companies in the resulting portfolio, which comprised 25 investment companies and platforms and more than 250 group subsidiaries. L’IMAD therefore became the superior sovereign investment grouping relevant to Etihad from the announced restructuring date. The resolution establishes consolidated institutional control and an integrated investment mandate; it does not identify an Israeli beneficial controller or establish that Etihad’s airline operations directly financed individual investments elsewhere in the group.^{22, 23}

Continuity of ADQ as an intermediate holding entity. AD Ports Group’s investor disclosures dated August 2026 identify ADQ as a wholly owned subsidiary through which L’IMAD proposed to acquire the remaining shares of AD Ports Group. They also identify an existing 75.42% ownership interest held by L’IMAD through ADQ. This provides independent post-restructuring evidence that ADQ continued to function as a corporate holding and investment vehicle beneath L’IMAD. The restructuring therefore supports examining possible continuing exposure through ADQ’s existing portfolio, subject to verification of individual assets and holdings. The AD Ports transaction itself concerns a UAE-listed infrastructure company and establishes no Israeli investment by L’IMAD.³⁵

Principle 4 - ownership, economic proximity and independence. The combined corporate disclosures establish three distinct relationships: Etihad’s wholly owned position within ADQ from October 2022; ADQ-directed integration of Etihad-associated aviation businesses; and ADQ’s incorporation into L’IMAD’s consolidated sovereign investment portfolio from January 2026. These relationships provide documented grounds for assessing parent-level economic proximity independently of whether Etihad-earmarked capital can be traced to an Israeli investment. No examined corporate announcement establishes investment-decision independence sufficient to sever Etihad from its controlling parent for group-proximity analysis. Conversely, common ownership alone does not establish that every portfolio investment is an Etihad transaction, that airline profits funded a specified Israeli company or that Etihad directed DisruptAD’s investment decisions. Those stronger forms of attribution remain unverified.^{22, 6, 34, 35}

Profit Repatriation & Economic Contribution

Group revenue

The Arab Air Carriers Organization reported that Etihad Airways generated AED 30.7 billion in worldwide revenue during 2025, equivalent to approximately US$8.4 billion. The airline carried 22.4 million passengers during the year.³⁶

UAE financial reporting confirmed that Etihad’s 2025 profit after tax reached approximately AED 2.6 billion, with an operating fleet of 127 aircraft at year-end.³⁷

These figures represent Etihad’s worldwide business and cannot be attributed specifically to Israel.^{36, 37}

Israeli-market revenue

No public evidence identified of Etihad’s separately disclosed ticket revenue, cargo revenue, operating profit or net profit attributable to Israel.

No public evidence identified of the total fees paid by Etihad to Ben Gurion Airport, Israeli airport service providers or Israeli government bodies during 2025–2026.

Revenue-generating Israeli activity

The July 2021 EL AL codeshare arrangement enabled EL AL to market Etihad-operated international passenger services to Israeli customers, providing an additional commercial sales channel.^{8, 27}

Maman Aviation’s Israeli distribution activities establish a continuing local mechanism for passenger-sales representation.^{3, 4}

Etihad Cargo’s appointment of Rom Top established a commercial channel for freight sales and logistical activity involving Israel.^{1, 2}

Cargo services and trade connectivity

In August 2024, Israeli logistics reporting described an additional wide-body Etihad service intended to increase freight capacity for Israeli importers and exporters.⁵

This provides a documented example of Etihad supplying international logistics capacity used by participants in the Israeli economy after 19 July 2024.⁵

Passenger and tourism connectivity

The April 2021 scheduled-service launch was explicitly associated with expanded commercial, diplomatic and tourism exchanges between Abu Dhabi and Israel.²⁵

In 2026, Israeli reporting attributed approximately 70% of passengers using the Tel Aviv–Abu Dhabi route to onward connections, while approximately 30% visited Abu Dhabi as their destination. These figures were presented as airline data in the published report.³⁰

Profit flows

Etihad’s documented ownership transfer to ADQ in October 2022 establishes the UAE parent entity to which ownership-related financial interests attach.⁶

No public evidence identified of Etihad remitting global profits to an Israeli-domiciled controlling shareholder.

No public evidence identified of the amount of profits generated in Israel and subsequently distributed to ADQ or other UAE entities.

No public evidence identified of a separately disclosed dividend or management-fee flow from an Israeli Etihad operating establishment.

Commercial cooperation with Israeli firms

The EL AL codeshare and loyalty relationship created a mechanism through which both airlines could sell itineraries and provide reciprocal passenger benefits.^{32, 33}

The publicly described agreements do not disclose partner-specific profit margins, commission rates or revenue-sharing amounts.^{9, 10}

Innovation investment and financial contribution

The OnBoard initiative announced in November 2020 contemplated startup mentoring, access to commercial partners and potential future investment in travel-technology companies.¹²

No public evidence identified establishing how much capital, if any, Etihad subsequently invested in Israeli companies through this initiative.

Economic ecosystem role

Maman Group’s description of Etihad as an international airline client confirms the airline’s participation in Israel’s commercial airline-representation ecosystem.³

The October 2026 UAE aviation-authority statement confirms the continuing role of Etihad’s scheduled service in passenger connectivity between Israel and the UAE.²⁹

The 2026 Israeli route-expansion reporting describes substantial Israeli passenger demand and the importance of onward connections through Abu Dhabi, although the published passenger figures were attributed to the airline and were not independently audited.³⁰

Settlement-specific financial contribution

No public evidence identified of Etihad Airways directly financing settlement construction, settlement agricultural operations, settlement infrastructure or settlement-based financial institutions.

No public evidence identified of Etihad’s participation in Israeli sovereign-bond underwriting, Israel Bonds distribution, settlement-linked lending or Israeli military insurance underwriting.

No public evidence identified of a quantifiable Etihad revenue stream directly attributable to settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory.

Parent-investment exposure distinguished from airline-generated profits. The completed Aleph Farms financing establishes that an ADQ-affiliated platform supplied capital to an Israeli operating business before Etihad joined the group. Subsequent reporting identifies the platform as an investor during Etihad’s ADQ ownership period, but does not disclose its contribution to the March 2025 financing, investment distributions, dividends, realised gains or eventual exit proceeds. The available sources therefore support parent-level capital exposure and possible investment returns without establishing an Etihad-origin funding flow. The completed Israeli investment scenario has a confirmed transaction date and round-level value, but lacks the investor-level value and sufficiently precise holding information needed for a fully quantified comparison with V=3.5.^{14, 17, 6}

L’IMAD-period group financial contribution - 30 January to 23 October 2026. No public evidence identified of a disclosed dividend, management fee, intercompany transfer, capital contribution or other quantified financial movement from Etihad Airways to an Israeli investment held by L’IMAD or ADQ. The government consolidation announcement establishes the controlling group and its investment capabilities, while post-restructuring investor disclosures establish the continued existence of ADQ as an intermediary. Neither source provides transaction-level tracing between Etihad’s profits and Israeli investees. This prevents quantification of Etihad-specific financial contributions through the parent chain, although such tracing is separate from whether a parent-level investment scenario qualifies for consideration under Principle 4.^{22, 35}