Registry · ZIM
Does ZIM Integrated Shipping Services support Israel?
Yes — ZIM Integrated Shipping Services has documented support for Israel on record. Every claim below links to its source.
Filed under: Hotels & travel companies · Companies that support Israel
Background
ZIM is the most literal case of a company supporting Israel: it is Israel's state-chartered national carrier, and its wartime role is not rumor but government testimony. Because of that role, ZIM has been the main maritime target of the BDS movement's 'Block the Boat' port protests in Australia, the US and elsewhere, and activists have documented its vessels carrying military cargo to Israel. In 2026 the planned sale of ZIM to Germany's Hapag-Lloyd (with Israeli fund FIMI) triggered a national-security debate in the Knesset precisely because the state relies on ZIM's fleet in wartime; the golden share and its emergency obligations are set to transfer to a FIMI subsidiary under the proposed deal.
Times of Israel Business & Human Rights Resource Centre Times of Israel (Knesset panel)
Timeline of documented support
Documented support
| Type | Date | Amount | Recipient | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operations in Israel | 1945 | — | State of Israel (national shipping line, emergency sealift) Israel's national shipping line: founded in 1945 before the state itself, headquartered in Haifa and listed on the NYSE. The Israeli government holds a 'golden share' in ZIM that requires the company to keep a minimum fleet Israeli-owned — 11 vessels — available for state use in emergencies, so that ammunition, wheat and fuel can still reach Israel when foreign carriers stop calling at its ports. | |
| Public statement | 2023-10-10 | — | State of Israel and the IDF (offer of fleet and infrastructure) Three days after October 7, ZIM publicly offered all of its vessels, ships and infrastructure to serve Israel's national needs during the war. President and CEO Eli Glickman said 'This is the time for mutual support and unity. Only together will we strengthen,' and urged ZIM employees to support residents of southern Israel and the IDF. | |
| Operations in Israel | 2026-02-22 | — | IDF and Israeli defense establishment (wartime military sealift) Israel's Defense Ministry told a Knesset panel that ZIM has been critical to military logistics throughout the war: representative Shai Halperin said 'Since October 7, we are in a security crisis, and Zim has provided a response' to shipping needs as European states imposed de facto arms embargoes, warning that without it 'we will not be able to bring here what the IDF and the defense establishment need.' ZIM's workers' committee chairman Oren Caspi said the company's vessels 'served as a vital channel for supplying ammunition, food, and medicine to the State of Israel' during the war. | |
| Operations in Israel | 2025-06 | — | Israeli health system (repatriation of essential doctors) During the June 2025 Israel–Iran war, with Ben Gurion Airport closed, the containership Zim Australia was pressed into service by Israel's Transport Ministry to shuttle stranded Israeli hospital doctors with essential specialties from Limassol, Cyprus to the Port of Haifa — around 40 doctors over two voyages — keeping Israel's sea gate open under missile fire. |
Frequently asked questions
Did ZIM Integrated Shipping Services donate money to Israel or Israeli causes?
We have no records of cash donations, but ZIM Integrated Shipping Services has documented support of other kinds (Operations in Israel, Public statement). See the records on this page.
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. 7 distinct sources are cited for ZIM Integrated Shipping Services. Our methodology page explains the full verification process.
Sources & citations
Record last updated: 2026-07-29
- Times of Israel timesofisrael.com
- Times of Israel (Knesset panel) timesofisrael.com
- Jerusalem Post jpost.com
- Maritime Executive maritime-executive.com
- Calcalist (CTech) calcalistech.com
- Times of Israel timesofisrael.com
- Business & Human Rights Resource Centre business-humanrights.org