As Israel’s genocide in Gaza intensifies, a handful of America’s richest Jewish tycoons have stepped forward as some of its most powerful backers of Israel’s economic and political machinery behind the war. Michael Bloomberg has channelled more than US$27.8 million into Israeli causes in just the past few years, including a massive initiative to rebuild 65 municipalities damaged by the conflict.
Oracle co-founder and owner of TikTok, Larry Ellison, has long poured funds into groups like Friends of the Israel Defence Forces and efforts to fortify border-town communities, while hedge-fund billionaire Bill Ackman has used his clout among U.S. elites to organise high-profile briefings and screenings that push back on pro-Palestinian voices. Jan Koum, the WhatsApp founder, Michael Dell of Dell Technologies, and Salesforce chairman and TIME magazine owner, Marc Benioff, round out a roster of U.S. billionaires whose money and influence are helping to underwrite Israel’s brutal siege on Gaza.
These billionaires’ “philanthropy” is presented as humanitarian generosity, yet in practice it reinforces Israel’s ability to maintain a blockade, finance its military campaigns, and dominate the global narrative, drowning out growing calls for Palestinian rights and justice. By funding emergency services for Israeli civilians and financing the political campaigns that defend Israel’s actions, these men are not neutral benefactors but key levers in a system that prolongs occupation and repeated bombardment, leaving Gaza’s families to pay the highest price.