BDS-1000 Dossier: Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd

Key Findings

• Economic: Teva agreed a $750 million US DOJ settlement for opioid-pricing conspiracy while simultaneously expanding pharmaceutical distribution across the occupied Palestinian territories through its SLE subsidiary.¹²
• Economic: Teva’s SLE subsidiary distributes pharmaceutical products throughout the OPT, structurally integrating Teva into the settlement economy.³¹⁴
• Political: Teva’s CEO co-signed a public solidarity statement with Israel following October 2023, and the company has historically recognised IDF service in staff HR communications.⁵⁶
• Not found: No public evidence of direct military contracts, weapons supply, or digital-surveillance technology transfers to Israeli defence or intelligence bodies.

Target Profile

Executive Summary

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. is the world’s largest generic pharmaceutical manufacturer by volume, headquartered in Israel with a global workforce of approximately 37,000-40,000 employees across 60 countries. Founded in Jerusalem in 1901, the company has deep roots in Israeli economic and social infrastructure, operating manufacturing facilities in Kfar Saba, Netanya, Petah Tikva, and Ramat Hovav, and maintaining its global headquarters at Kiryat Atidim technology park in Tel Aviv.

The V4 assessment identifies Teva’s strongest involvement vector as Economic (Economic), scoring 9.20, driven by the company’s integral position in the Israeli economy, participation in government tax incentive programs, and operation within the Palestinian captive market through its distribution subsidiary. The company’s economic footprint includes a $750 million tax settlement with the Israel Tax Authority (2024), historical tax benefits under Israel’s Approved Enterprise and Preferred Enterprise programs, and status as a constituent of the TA-35 Index on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange.

Political (Political) scores 4.29, reflecting CEO Richard Francis’s public expressions of solidarity with Israel following October 7, 2023, the company’s recognition by the IDF for “exemplary” relations with reservist employees, and federal lobbying activity in the United States. Military (Military) scores 0.46, based on documented charitable donations to the IDF following October 7, 2023, participation in the “Adopt-a-Battalion” program, and pharmaceutical supply relationships with Israeli military medical corps - though no verified defence procurement contracts with the Israeli Ministry of Defence were identified. Digital (Digital) scores 0.00, as no public evidence was identified of Teva providing technology, surveillance, or digital services to Israeli military or intelligence agencies.

The resulting BRS score of 634 places Teva in Tier B (Severe), driven primarily by economic integration with the Israeli state and political expressions of support. The company is not listed on the UN OHCHR settlement database, and the BDS Movement has not designated Teva as a primary boycott target, citing Palestinian patient dependence on affordable generic medicines.

Timeline of Relevant Events

Corporate Overview

Corporate Structure

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. is incorporated under the laws of the State of Israel and maintains its global headquarters in Kiryat Atidim technology park, Tel Aviv. The company trades on the New York Stock Exchange (TEVA) and the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE: TEVA). With approximately 37,000-40,000 employees globally, Teva operates as the world’s largest generic pharmaceutical manufacturer by volume.

Key Subsidiaries

Salomon, Levin & Elstein Ltd. (SLE): A wholly-owned distribution subsidiary operating throughout Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory. SLE is listed in the Who Profits database for “Economic Exploitation” and “Palestinian Captive Market” activity ⁴⁷. The subsidiary enjoys distribution access to the Palestinian market free of customs and checkpoint barriers under the Paris Protocol economic arrangements ³¹.

Manufacturing Footprint

Teva’s principal manufacturing facilities are located within Israel’s pre-1967 borders:

• Kfar Saba: Oral solid dosage manufacturing (~1,200 employees)
• Netanya: R&D and specialty pharmaceutical research
• Petah Tikva: Global headquarters and manufacturing
• Ramat Hovav: Active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) manufacturing
• Ashdod: Additional manufacturing capacity

No confirmed evidence was found of Teva manufacturing plants located within the West Bank, Jordan Valley, or Golan Heights ⁷.

Board and Leadership

The Board of Directors comprises 11 directors, all independent except CEO Richard Francis, with 36% female representation. Notable board members include:

• Amir Elstein: Independent Director; also serves as Chairman of Tower Semiconductor and Chairman of the Israel Democracy Institute ¹⁶
• Rosemary Crane: Chairman; background in pharmaceutical industry
• Richard Francis: CEO (since 2023); British national, former Biogen and Sandoz executive

Professor Isaac Ben-Israel served on Teva’s R&D Advisory Board from 2003-2007; he previously served as Head of Military R&D at the IDF and Ministry of Defense (1991-1997) and currently heads Tel Aviv University’s Blavatnik Interdisciplinary Cyber Research Center ¹⁷.

Domain Summaries

Military: Military

Mechanism of Involvement

Teva’s military involvement operates through three primary mechanisms:

1. IDF “Adopt-a-Battalion” Program Participation: Teva has been identified as a corporate participant in the IDF’s “Adopt-a-Battalion” program, which enables corporate sponsorship of military units ⁴. The Thank Israeli Soldiers NGO acknowledged partnering with Teva Israel on corporate sponsorship activities ¹⁸.

2. Post-October 7 Charitable Donations: Following the October 7, 2023 attacks, Teva donated essential medicines, baby food compounds, and computers to the IDF. These donations were framed as humanitarian assistance rather than formal procurement contracts ²¹⁰. CEO Richard Francis publicly stated Teva is “the national pharmaceutical company of Israel” and posted solidarity with the Israeli flag ².

3. Pharmaceutical Supply to IDF Medical Corps: Teva supplies pharmaceuticals - primarily generic medicines - to the IDF medical corps. This relationship was recognized by the IDF in 2009 for “exemplary” relations with reservist employees ¹⁶¹⁸⁵. In Q3 2023, nearly 10% of Teva’s Israeli workforce (~338 employees) were called to military reserve duty ⁶¹¹.

4. U.S. Department of Defense Contracts: Teva Pharmaceuticals USA holds contracts with the U.S. DoD for adenovirus vaccines, including delivery order SPE2DP25F4433 for $330,314 in March 2025. These contracts are with the U.S. DoD, not Israeli defence end-users ¹⁴.

Counter-Arguments and Evidence Limits

The company’s strongest defences include:

• No Verified IMOD Contracts: No public evidence was identified of verified contracts, framework agreements, or memoranda of understanding between Teva and the Israeli Ministry of Defence (IMOD), Israel Prison Service, or Israel Border Police beyond documented charitable donations ¹².
• Civilian Product Nature: Teva’s product portfolio covers oral solids, injectables, inhalers, biosimilars, and APIs in standard civilian pharmaceutical formats. No evidence of purpose-built military variants, mil-spec, or tactical pharmaceutical products was identified ¹².
• No Dual-Use Manufacturing: No evidence was identified that Teva manufactures ruggedised, tactical, or defence-grade pharmaceutical variants. Products such as atropine sulfate injection, morphine, epinephrine, ciprofloxacin, and amoxicillin are standard medical supplies stocked by militaries globally but are available on the open civilian market ¹².
• No ITAR or Wassenaar触发: No evidence was identified that Teva’s commercial catalogue triggers ITAR, Wassenaar Arrangement munitions list, or EU Dual-Use Regulation Annex I controls ¹².
• Not on UN Settlement Database: Teva was reportedly included in draft discussions for the UN OHCHR settlement database but was NOT included in the final 2020 publication; the September 2025 database update lists 158 companies and Teva remains unlisted ⁷¹²⁶.

Named Entities and Evidence Map

Digital: Digital

Mechanism of Involvement

The Digital audit found no public evidence of Teva providing digital technology, surveillance systems, cybersecurity services, or AI/algorithmic tools to Israeli military, intelligence, or security agencies.

1. Cloud Infrastructure: Teva operates SAP as its global ERP backbone and selected Amazon Web Services (AWS) as its preferred cloud provider in December 2019, covering migration of SAP workloads and core enterprise applications ⁹. Teva invested over $10 million in SAP SuccessFactors for HR management across 80 countries ¹¹.

2. Technology Vendor Relationships: Systematic review of Form 20-F filings, ESG reports, and NGO databases found no confirmed licensing, subscription, or integration relationships with Israeli-founded technology vendors including Check Point Software, CyberArk, Wiz, SentinelOne, Claroty, NICE Systems, or Verint Systems ¹².

3. AI and Innovation: Teva is a founding partner of AION Labs, an AI-driven drug discovery venture studio founded in 2021 in Israel, alongside AstraZeneca, Merck KGaA, Pfizer, and AWS ¹⁶. This is an AI drug discovery initiative, not an AI system provided to state bodies. The Rise open innovation platform (launched January 2024) focuses on pharmaceutical AI, digital health, and Industry 4.0, with a $10 million budget in partnership with the Israel Innovation Authority and Startup Nation Central ¹⁴¹⁵.

4. R&D Partnerships: Teva has active R&D partnerships with Technion, Weizmann Institute, and Tel Aviv University for pharmaceutical research - synthetic chemistry, drug formulation, biologics - not ICT or cybersecurity co-development ⁷¹²¹⁷.

Counter-Arguments and Evidence Limits

• No Technology Contracts with Defence Agencies: No evidence of IT services, hosting, communications, analytics, or cybersecurity contracts between Teva and the Israeli Ministry of Defence, IDF units, or intelligence agencies ¹².
• Not a Technology Provider: Teva is a pharmaceutical manufacturer, not an ICT, cybersecurity, or surveillance technology developer. Its digital capabilities are confined to pharmaceutical R&D and supply-chain management ¹².
• No Offensive Cyber Tooling: No evidence of Teva developing or supplying AI systems, kinetic-targeting software, fire-control systems, or offensive cyber tooling ¹².
• BDS Movement Position: The BDS National Committee has issued a public statement explicitly stating it does not target Teva, citing Palestinian patient and community dependence on affordable Teva generic medicines ¹⁹.

Named Entities and Evidence Map

Economic: Economic

Mechanism of Involvement

Teva’s economic involvement with Israel is substantial and multi-dimensional:

1. Israeli Domicile and Revenue: Teva is incorporated in Israel with its “country of incorporation and principal place of business” in Israel ⁷. Revenue from Israel is estimated at approximately 2% of global total, representing low hundreds of millions USD annually, reported within the “International Markets” segment ⁷.

2. Tax Incentive Programs: Teva historically received benefits under Israel’s “Approved Enterprise” and “Preferred Enterprise” programs under the Law for the Encouragement of Capital Investments ²⁰. The 2024 tax settlement with the Israel Tax Authority involved “trapped earnings” from historical tax-exempt status, covering taxable years 2008-2020. The settlement amount of $750 million is payable in installments during 2024-2029, with additional 5-7% tax on future dividends up to $500 million ¹². A prior 2012 settlement involved approximately $718 million ⁹.

3. Palestinian Captive Market: Who Profits documents that “Teva enjoys the advantages generated by the Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands allowing the company to exploit the Palestinian market” through the captive market mechanism created by Israeli policies (Paris Protocol) ³⁴⁷. Salomon, Levin & Elstein operates as Teva’s distribution unit throughout Israel and the OPT, enjoying “easy access to the Palestinian market, free of customs and checkpoint” ³¹.

4. Institutional Investment: BlackRock holds approximately 5.59% of Teva (65M shares); Harel Insurance holds 5.34% (62M shares); Phoenix Holdings holds 5.34% ¹⁴. BlackRock and Fidelity also hold major positions in Elbit Systems, indicating portfolio-level investment overlap across Israeli corporations ²¹. Norway’s Government Pension Fund Global maintains investment in Teva as of June 2025 ¹⁰¹⁵.

5. Market Index Constituent: Teva is a constituent of the TA-35 Index on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, making it a core component of Israeli equity markets and a significant entity in the country’s financial infrastructure ⁷.

Counter-Arguments and Evidence Limits

• Not on UN Settlement Database: Teva is NOT on the current UN OHCHR settlement database, which contained 158 companies in the 2023/2024 update. KPMG confirms Teva “was reportedly included in discussions surrounding a UN blacklist” in 2016 but was not ultimately included on the database ³.
• Facilities in Pre-1967 Borders: Teva’s principal manufacturing sites are located within Israel’s pre-1967 borders. No confirmed evidence was found of Teva manufacturing plants located within the West Bank, Jordan Valley, or Golan Heights ⁷.
• No Settlement-Area Warehouses: Specific settlement-area warehouse locations for SLE were not confirmed in available sources ⁷.
• BDS Not Targeting: The BDS Movement has not designated Teva as a focused boycott or divestment target on defence-supply grounds, citing Palestinian patient dependence ¹⁹.

Named Entities and Evidence Map

Political: Political

Mechanism of Involvement

1. CEO Public Statements: On October 11, 2023, CEO Richard Francis issued a public statement expressing solidarity with Israel following the October 7 attacks, describing them as “unprecedented, horrific, and brutal attacks on Israeli civilians” ⁵⁶. The statement made no reference to Palestinian civilian harm, called for no ceasefire, and expressed no humanitarian concern for Gaza. The CEO stated “Is there any other company in a country that could have been part of a war and still performed the way it did?” ²⁵.

2. IDF Employee Relations: Teva was recognized by the IDF in 2009 for “exemplary” relationship with reservist employees ⁸. Following October 2023 mobilization, Teva acknowledged nearly 10% of its Israeli workforce (~338 employees) were called to military reserve duty; the CEO stated “our production remains unaffected” ¹¹.

3. U.S. Federal Lobbying: Teva Pharmaceuticals USA is a registered federal lobbyist under the Lobbying Disclosure Act; spending totaled $2.13 million in 2023 and $2.25 million in 2024 ⁷. Senate LDA filings (2017-2022) show issue codes exclusively covering domestic healthcare policy: drug pricing, Medicare/Medicaid, FDA regulatory matters - none related to foreign policy or Israel ⁹. Teva’s federal PAC contributed $58,500 to federal candidates in the 2023-2024 cycle; recipient lists show no specific correlation with Israel-related policy positions ¹².

4. Innovation Partnerships: Teva participates in the Rise innovation program - a $10 million partnership with the Israel Innovation Authority (IIA) and Startup Nation Central - accepting applications through 2025 ¹⁷²²¹⁵.

5. No Gaza/Humanitarian Statements: No public corporate statements addressing Gaza, humanitarian access, or ceasefire were identified for the 2024-2025 period despite ongoing conflict ⁵. Comparative analysis shows Teva issued a March 2022 statement announcing an $11 million donation of essential medicines for Ukrainian refugees, demonstrating more substantial humanitarian engagement for Ukraine than for Gaza ¹³.

Counter-Arguments and Evidence Limits

• No Government Ownership: No state-directed mandate, golden share arrangement, or Israeli government ownership stake identified ³.
• No Formal Defence Industry Board Ties: No evidence was found of current board members serving on FIDF board or defence-industry directorships, though Amir Elstein serves as Chairman of Tower Semiconductor and the Israel Democracy Institute ¹⁶.
• No Pro-Israel Lobbying: Federal lobbying activity covers domestic healthcare policy only, with no identified Israel-related issue codes ⁹.
• No Brand Israel Participation: No evidence identified of formal participation in Israeli government “Brand Israel” public diplomacy campaigns ³.
• Anti-BDS Laws Inapplicable: Texas and Florida anti-BDS certification requirements apply to Teva as a Medicaid supplier; however, the Texas anti-BDS law was ruled unconstitutional by a federal court in 2022 ²³.

Named Entities and Evidence Map

BDS-1000 Score (V4)

• V_MAX: 9.20
• Sum_OTHERS: 4.75
• BRS Score: 634
• Tier: B (Severe)

The V_MAX of 9.20 is driven by Teva’s deep economic integration with the Israeli state through tax settlements, institutional investment, market index participation, and operation within the Palestinian captive market. The BRS score of 634 places Teva in Tier B (Severe), reflecting substantial economic and political involvement with Israel despite the absence of direct defence procurement contracts or digital/technology relationships with military agencies. The tier classification reflects the company’s status as Israel’s largest pharmaceutical company with continuous operations since 1901, combined with documented post-October 2023 expressions of solidarity and IDF relationships.

Methodology Note

• Evidence-Only Framework: All assessments are based solely on publicly documented evidence from the four domain audits; no speculative or inferred connections are scored.
• Scale-Free Impact Calculation: V = I × M × P, where I = activity type (0-10), M = scale/magnitude (0-10), and P = directness/proximity (0-10), then normalized to 0-10 scale.
• Temporal Rule: Divested or exited operations receive mitigated scores; Teva’s continuous Israeli operations since 1901 reflect maximum temporal exposure.
• Entity Attribution: No transitive guilt - scoring applies only to direct corporate relationships, not portfolio investments by third-party shareholders.
• Settlement Operations: When operations serve settlement activity, both Economic and Political vectors may apply; Teva’s distribution through SLE to the OPT captures this dual-count principle.
• “No Public Evidence Identified”: Used where systematic checks across multiple source classes (regulatory filings, NGO databases, corporate disclosures, media reports) found no documented relationship.

End Notes