An Israeli weapons manufacturer that makes munitions and components for Israel’s battle tanks.
Ashot Ashkelon specializes in manufacturing gears, transmissions, and gearboxes for military and aerospace applications. It makes most of its revenue from its military business, specifically from sales to the Israeli military, which amounted to 64% of its 2024 total revenue.
For decades, Ashot has been the sole provider of transmission units for Israel’s Merkava battle tank as well as the Namer armored personnel carrier. It manufactures the RK-325 transmission unit for the Merkava 4 and 5, under license from German company Renk, which originally developed it.
The company also makes tungsten-based armor-piercing tank projectiles for the Israeli military. Other components Ashot makes for Israel’s battle tanks include ammunition auto-loaders, parts of the armor itself, and more.
During Israel’s 2023-2025 genocidal war on Gaza, Ashot experienced a sharp increase of orders by the Israeli Ministry of Defense. As a result, the company’s share price has risen by 132% during the year after October 2023 and by 250% between 2022-2025.
Some of Ashot's production is done by its subsidiary Reliance Gear in Addison, Illinois. This allows Israel to receive these components as a gift from the U.S. government through its Foreign Military Sales program. Ashot acquired Reliance Gear in 2011 specifically so that it could continue benefiting from this program and also so it could become a supplier of the U.S. Department of Defense.
The company also has commercial activities in the U.S., supplying components to U.S. aviation companies for integration into Boeing and Airbus commercial aircraft.
Ashot is controlled by Israeli private equity firm FIMI Opportunity Funds, which owns 84% of its stocks. It was founded as a government-owned company, part of Israel Military Industries. In 2018 it became part of Elbit Systems, and was later acquired by FIMI in 2022.
Merkava Tanks Used in War Crimes
The Israeli military has been using the Merkava as its exclusive main battle tank for decades, and used it extensively in its 2023-2025 genocidal attacks on the Gaza Strip. For example, Merkava tanks were part of the January 29, 2024 killing of 6-year-old Hind Rajab and her six family members. A tank round was found in the remains of the ambulance crew that attempted to rescue her. Merkava tanks also took part in a June 3, 2025 incident, in which the Israeli military killed 27 Palestinians as they were waiting for food at a "humanitarian" distribution point. In addition, Merkava tanks were reportedly used to "deliberately run over dozens of Palestinian civilians alive" and to destroy civilian property in multiple separate incidents during 2023-2024.
Merkava tanks were also used in Israel's systematic attacks on Gaza's hospitals. For example, Merkava tanks participated in repeated attacks on Shifa Hospital, blockading the entrance and firing on unarmed civilians trying to evacuate in November 2023, and later reportedly firing “nonstop” at the ICU in March 2024. Merkava tanks similarly attacked the Indonesian Hospital and the Kamal Adwan Hospital in November-December 2023. Since hospitals are afforded special protections under international law, these attacks could amount to war crimes.
Before 2023, Israel used Merkava tanks in all of its ground assaults on the Gaza Strip, including the large scale assaults of 2008 and 2014. During Israel's 2014 assault on Gaza, artillery and tank shelling killed at least 81 children, and Merkava tanks were reportedly used to purposefully destroy Palestinian agricultural lands. In 2018, Merkava tanks participated in Israel's "murderous assault against protesting Palestinians" as part of the "Great March of Return" protests in the Gaza Strip. The Merkava Mark 4, the first to include Renk components, was extensively used in the 2006 Lebanon War and became operational two years earlier, during the Second Palestinian Uprising. In February 2025, Israel deployed Merkava tanks in the occupied West Bank for the first time since then.