The Israeli Ministry of Defense and Israeli defence companies have channelled millions of dollars into weapons-related research at US universities, much of it through funding arrangements that were not consistently disclosed in federal databases, according to an investigation by Drop Site News.The investigation found financial links between Israel’s Ministry of Defense, weapons manufacturers and dozens of American universities over the past two decades. These included research grants, tuition payments and other forms of institutional funding, with records dating from 2004 to 2025.According to Drop Site News, an analysis of university and state audit records identified more than $15 million in funding linked to the Israeli Ministry of Defense or Israeli defence companies that was either unreported or reported inconsistently. The publication said the actual figure could be higher because some university records did not disclose funding amounts, while others contained conflicting information.The investigation identified ties involving prominent institutions including Columbia, Cornell, Princeton, Harvard, Northwestern, Georgia Tech, the University of Connecticut, the University of Maryland and the University of California, Berkeley.Among the Israeli companies involved were defence giants Elbit Systems, Rafael and Israel Aerospace Industries, with records showing sponsorship of research projects related to military technologies.At the University of Connecticut, for example, federal audit records show an Israeli Ministry of Defense-funded project titled “Impact Point Prediction Research for Short & Medium Range Thrusting Projectiles”. The project received $668,456 across nine fiscal years between 2013 and 2023. Another project, “High Sensitivity SQUIDs for Magnetic Field Detection”, received $251,336 over the same period.US law requires universities receiving federal assistance to report foreign gifts and contracts worth at least $250,000 in a calendar year. However, Drop Site found that some Israeli funding did not consistently appear in the federal disclosure system.The findings come amid renewed tensions between Israel and the US over Israeli military actions in the region. Axios recently reported that Israeli strikes on Syria’s Abu al-Duhur airbase frustrated senior Trump administration officials, with Washington calling the operation an “unnecessary escalation”.
