Registry · ORAN

Does Orange support Israel?

Orange S.A.

Statement on recordupdated 2026-09-26

Orange has publicly expressed support for Israel, but we found no record of donations or aid. Every claim below links to its source.

Filed under: Tech companies · Companies that support Israel

Background

Orange is the most-searched European telecom name on this question because of a 2015 diplomatic incident. At a press event in Cairo on 3 June 2015, CEO Stéphane Richard said he would end Orange's brand-licensing deal with Israel's Partner Communications "tomorrow morning" if contracts allowed, adding that it mattered to build trust with Arab countries. Orange said the next day that it intended to terminate the arrangement. The remarks were read in Israel as backing the BDS campaign, which had been pressing Orange over Partner's activity in West Bank settlements; Orange signs were covered with Israeli flags in protest, Netanyahu attacked the company, and the French government — which holds a stake of about 13.45% in Orange — distanced itself, with President François Hollande saying he did not support a boycott of Israel. Israel worked the diplomatic channel as well: Globes reported on 4 June 2015 that its embassy in Paris and its foreign and economy ministries had been in contact with the Élysée since that morning to demand France condemn the remarks, with ambassador Yossi Gal saying the embassy was acting vigorously on Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely's instruction, while Partner told its own customers it was an Israeli company in every respect. Richard flew to Jerusalem on 12 June 2015, met Netanyahu and Peres, expressed deep regret and said Orange had never supported and would never support a boycott of Israel. On 30 June 2015 the two companies agreed a framework for ending the licence, with Orange paying Partner up to about €90 million. Partner exercised its termination right in January 2016 and replaced the Orange brand with its own on 16 February 2016 — nine years before the licence was due to expire. Throughout, Orange held no shares in Partner: it was a licensor, not an owner. Orange kept its own Israeli activities (accelerator, business services, research), and today has no Israeli mobile-operator relationship.

The Guardian — Orange says it plans to terminate contract with brand partner in Israel BBC News — Orange's Stephane Richard tells Israel of regret over comments Times of Israel — Orange announces it will sever link with Israeli subsidiary Haaretz — 'Orange is in Israel to stay,' CEO says Total Telecom — Israel's Partner drops Orange brand גלובס (Globes, Hebrew) — ישראל לצרפת: גנו את תמיכת מנכ"ל אורנג' בחרם, 4 June 2015 (Wayback)

Timeline of documented records

1999200220052008201120141999 — Partnership: Partner Communications Company Ltd. (Rosh HaAyin, Israel)Partnership19992015 — Operations in Israel: Orange's own Israeli activities (Orange Fab IL accelerator, Orange Business Services, Viaccess-Orca, Iris Capital)Operations in Israel20152015-06 — Public statement: Israeli government (Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu; Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister Silvan Shalom; Israel's embassy in Paris)Public statement2015-062015-06 — Public statement: Public remarks — to Agence France-Presse, and to Israeli media (Yedioth Ahronoth)Public statement2015-062015-06 — Public statement: Israeli government (Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu; former President Shimon Peres)Public statement2015-062015-06 — Partnership: Partner Communications Company Ltd. (Rosh HaAyin, Israel)Partnership2015-06

Documented records

TypeDateAmountRecipientSources
Partnership1999—Partner Communications Company Ltd. (Rosh HaAyin, Israel)
From 1999 until 16 February 2016, Orange S.A. licensed the "Orange" brand to Partner Communications, one of Israel's largest mobile operators, which marketed all of its products and services under that name. The arrangement was a brand-licensing agreement only: Orange never held shares in Partner and did not operate a mobile network in Israel. The licence had originally been set to run until 2025. Hebrew business daily Globes reported on 4 June 2015 that Partner was paying France Télécom — the company renamed Orange S.A. in 2013 — tens of millions of shekels a year for the right to use the brand, and that the agreement had recently been extended: under this deal the money ran from Israel to Orange, not the other way.
Public statement2015-06-05—Israeli government (Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu; Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister Silvan Shalom; Israel's embassy in Paris)
On Friday 5 June 2015, two days after the Cairo remarks and a week before the Jerusalem visit, Orange CEO Stéphane Richard telephoned Israeli leaders to apologise. Ynet reported that he called Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Silvan Shalom — deputy prime minister and interior minister — and told Shalom: "I am a friend of Israel and I love it. My words were taken out of context", adding "I apologise in my own name and in the name of the company for the statements. We at Orange condemn boycotts of any kind." Ynet reported that he then approached Israel's embassy in Paris to ask for a meeting with Ambassador Yossi Gal and convey the same apology. This is a statement by the chief executive, given in his own name and the company's — not a donation, a grant or a contract. The quoted words reach every outlet from the readout issued by Silvan Shalom's office, so they are one origin quoted three times: Ynet and Haaretz each covered the call themselves — the Haaretz report, by Barak Ravid on 5 June, is readable only as far as its opening lines without a subscription — and TheMarker carried it from the news agencies on 6 June.
Public statement2015-06-06—Public remarks — to Agence France-Presse, and to Israeli media (Yedioth Ahronoth)
In the week between the Cairo remarks and the Jerusalem visit, Orange publicly reversed course. BBC Arabic reported on 4 June 2015 that the company said it had not wanted to enter a political controversy and that it withdraws from markets where it is not the actual service provider. On 6 June BBC Arabic reported Richard telling Agence France-Presse that "Orange entered the Israeli market to stay", and quoted Yedioth Ahronoth's report of his words "We love Israel"; the Times of Israel separately noted that he had said several times in those days that he and the firm "love" Israel and were there "to stay". These are statements by the chief executive and the company — not a donation, a grant or a contract. The quotes reached BBC Arabic through Agence France-Presse and Yedioth Ahronoth, so the two BBC Arabic reports are one line of reporting; the Times of Israel covered the same remarks in its own account. TheMarker carried Orange's 4 June statement in Hebrew under its news-agencies byline, quoting the official release: Orange made clear that evening that it wished to separate from Partner, that the consideration behind the move was commercial and that the company "is not involved in politics". So the 4 June clarification rests on Orange's own release, as carried by BBC Arabic and TheMarker.
Public statement2015-06-12—Israeli government (Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu; former President Shimon Peres)
Orange CEO Stéphane Richard flew to Jerusalem, met Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former president Shimon Peres, and publicly walked back his Cairo remarks. He said he was "profoundly and personally distressed" by the misunderstanding and "deeply regret[ted] the impact" of his statements, and told both Netanyahu and Peres that "Orange as a company has never supported and will never support any kind of boycott against Israel", adding that Orange would keep doing business and keep investing in the country. This is the personal statement of the CEO on behalf of the company, not a donation or a contract. Globes carried the Hebrew record of the Jerusalem meeting, in which Richard said he deeply regretted the controversy that had arisen and wanted to state explicitly that Orange as a company had never supported and would never support boycotts of any kind against Israel, adding that "Israel is a wonderful place to be in the digital industry, and our wish is to continue to strengthen and invest here."
Partnership2015-06-30—Partner Communications Company Ltd. (Rosh HaAyin, Israel)
Orange and Partner announced a new framework agreement for winding down the brand licence. Orange agreed to pay Partner €40 million from signing until completion of a joint market study, plus a further €50 million if the brand licensing agreement was terminated within 24 months — up to roughly €90 million (about $100 million) in total. Announcing it, Orange deputy CEO Pierre Louette said: "Israel is a strategically important country and we have a long term commitment to it, including our innovation activities through the Orange affiliates in Israel." The payments are contractual compensation to an Israeli company for ending a licence, not charitable giving. Before that agreement, Globes reported on 4 June 2015 that Partner held a shelf plan to drop the Orange brand, was weighing a damages claim against France Télécom, and that France Télécom would face a high penalty if it cancelled the licence on its own initiative.
Operations in Israel2015—Orange's own Israeli activities (Orange Fab IL accelerator, Orange Business Services, Viaccess-Orca, Iris Capital)
Separately from the Partner brand licence, Orange ran its own businesses in Israel and said they would stay. Orange Fab IL, a three-month accelerator for Israeli start-ups, was on its second cohort by June 2015 (graduates included LogDog, Hola, Parko and DogTV) and was directed by Orange corporate-development vice-president Jacky Abitbol, who also co-managed the Iris Capital fund; Orange Business Services and Viaccess-Orca (acquired in 2008) also operated locally. CEO Stéphane Richard told Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely that Orange "has a lasting presence in Israel" and that these businesses "are going nowhere". After the brand split, Orange still held research facilities in Israel while no longer being connected to any Israeli mobile operator.

Frequently asked questions

Did Orange donate money to Israel or Israeli causes?

We have no records of donations. What is on record is a public statement of support — see this page for the wording and its source.

Where does this information come from?

Every record on this page links to its source — news reports, official company statements, tax filings, or government records. 21 distinct sources are cited for Orange. Our methodology page explains the full verification process.

Sources & citations

Record last updated: 2026-09-26

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