Short answer: As of July 2026, ExxonMobil has real, verifiable business ties to Israel, though it has no consumer-facing retail presence there. Israel's gas stations are domestic brands like Paz, Delek, Sonol, and Dor Alon, not Exxon. Two concrete links stand out. ExxonMobil has held US Department of Defense contracts to supply fuel to Israel through the Foreign Military Sales program since 2003, and in July 2026 it is weighing a joint bid with Energean to enter Israel's offshore natural gas exploration sector. Exxon has issued no anti-Israel statement and joined no boycott. Where it turns up on boycott material, it is targeted by the BDS movement as one of the oil majors that supplies Israel, not aligned against it.
What the record actually shows
ExxonMobil is one of the world's largest publicly traded energy companies, and its connection to Israel is built on business and government contracts, not storefronts. Here is what is documented.
- Fuel for Israel under US military contracts, since 2003. ExxonMobil began winning US Department of Defense contracts, under the Foreign Military Sales program, to supply fuel to Israel starting in 2003, with follow-on diesel and aviation-fuel contracts recorded in 2005, 2010, and 2011 for use by Israeli military aircraft, tanks, and vehicles, per the American Friends Service Committee's Investigate database and corroborated by Oil Change International. Worth flagging plainly: this record is compiled by advocacy researchers, not confirmed in an ExxonMobil press release, so treat it as well sourced rather than a corporate statement.
- An early look at Israeli waters, 2019. In March 2019, reports revealed ExxonMobil was evaluating a bid for offshore oil and gas exploration blocks in Israel's waters, an early signal of interest in the Eastern Mediterranean gas boom, according to Nasdaq and Reuters and The Jerusalem Post.
- A partnership with Energean, late 2025. ExxonMobil and Energean finalized a joint natural gas exploration agreement near the Greece-Italy maritime border (ExxonMobil holding roughly 60 percent), the partnership now cited as the basis for a possible joint Israel bid, per Calcalist / CTech.
- Israel opens its fifth offshore bid round, July 10, 2026. Israel's Energy Ministry launched its fifth offshore bid round (OBR5) for natural gas exploration, opened to international energy companies, with bidding expected to close toward the end of 2026 and licenses awarded in early 2027, as reported by MEES.
- Exxon weighs a joint Israel bid, July 2026. ExxonMobil is weighing entry into Israel's offshore gas sector via a joint bid with Energean in the fifth licensing round. Energy Minister Eli Cohen said a global energy firm comparable to or larger than Chevron had expressed interest, while Chevron and NewMed, the Leviathan operators, are barred from this round, according to Calcalist / CTech.
Note the tense: as of July 2026 this is a bid under consideration, not a closed investment or an operating Israeli project. Bids close at the end of 2026 and licenses would be awarded in early 2027. Still, a company choosing to invest in Israel's energy future is the opposite of a boycott.
Where the boycott talk comes from
The picture that circulates on social media is often muddled, so it helps to separate two very different things. In 2026 the BDS movement named ExxonMobil, alongside Shell, Eni, and TotalEnergies, among the oil majors it says together supply most of Israel's oil, and called for an "energy embargo." That makes Exxon a target of BDS pressure, a company the movement wants to cut off from Israel, not a company that boycotts Israel.
Exxon does not appear on the BDS National Committee's short consumer priority list, which features brands like HP and Puma. And while Exxon draws poor marks from ethical-shopping researchers, those ratings are about climate and the environment, a separate issue from Israel entirely, and should not be conflated with it.
The bottom line
ExxonMobil has substantive, pro-engagement ties to Israel: a long record of supplying fuel to Israel under US military-sales contracts since 2003, and an active 2026 move, alongside Energean, to invest in Israel's offshore gas sector. It has no anti-Israel stance and no consumer stores to boycott in Israel. Where it appears on boycott material, it is as a company BDS wants to pressure for helping Israel, not one aligned against it. For a pro-Israel shopper, Exxon reads as a company doing business with, and increasingly investing in, Israel.
Support Israel directly
Multinational energy deals are one thing, but the most direct way to back Israel with your wallet is to buy from Israeli makers. Our Support Israel collection gathers apparel, jewelry, and gifts that send your dollars straight to Israeli designers and the people behind them.
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Last updated July 2026. We update these profiles as the record changes.
