Kushner, Key Trump Negotiator on Gaza, Owns Firm With Major Stake in Israeli Military
Kushner’s private equity company is the biggest shareholder in a Tel Aviv firm that invests heavily in arms makers.
By Sharon Zhang ,
Kushner’s private equity company is the biggest shareholder in a Tel Aviv firm that invests heavily in arms makers.
By Sharon Zhang ,
October 1, 2026
Jared Kushner speaks during a joint press conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and U.S. President's Special Envoy Steve Witkoff in Kyiv, Ukraine, on September 6, 2026.Maxym Marusenko / NurPhoto via Getty Images
Jared Kushner’s private equity company reportedly has major stakes in companies that provide weapons to the Israeli military, as new reporting reveals the latest conflict of interest concerns with regard to Kushner’s role as a top Middle East negotiator for President Donald Trump, including on the Gaza genocide.
A CNN investigation published Thursday finds that Kushner’s company, Affinity Partners, holds the largest stake in a Tel Aviv-based firm called Phoenix Financial. The report, which analyzed just a fraction of Phoenix’s holdings, shows that the firm holds over $450 million across nine companies that provide weapons or equipment to the Israeli military.
The firm’s largest investment related to the Israeli military is in Elbit Systems, which is Israel’s largest weapons manufacturer, with $265 million in holdings. Its next three biggest holdings in this realm are $68 million in Next Vision, which sells cameras for attack drones; $56 million in Bet Shemesh Engines, which makes engines for military aircraft; and $40 million in Reshef Technologies, which makes electronic fuzes for artillery shells that have been used in Gaza.
Its other investments include roughly millions of dollars in Boeing, which makes bombs and bomb kits used by Israel in Gaza, and Caterpillar, whose bulldozers are used by the Israeli military to raze civilian infrastructure in Gaza and the occupied West Bank.
“All nine companies identified by CNN saw their stock value climb last year, with many stating the war in Gaza had driven demand for their businesses,” the report found.
Affinity, which Kushner is the sole owner of, bought a 5 percent stake in Phoenix in 2024, as Israel’s genocide was reaching a high point. It then doubled its stake in the firm just before Trump was sworn into office in 2025, becoming Phoenix’s biggest shareholder.
“Investing in Phoenix in July 2024 was a decision rooted in my belief in Israel’s resiliency and the fundamentals of Phoenix’s business,” Kushner told Bloomberg at the time.
The report raises concerns about Kushner’s true motivations and conflicts of interest in his work conducting negotiations on Gaza and beyond. As a lead negotiator on Gaza, executive board member of Trump’s “Board of Peace,” and Trump’s son-in-law, Kushner has enormous influence over Israel’s genocidal campaign in Gaza, as well as the financial future of the enclave.
In January, Kushner unveiled his plan for “New Gaza” that contains a dystopic vision of a technocapitalist future for the area at the World Economic Forum. His presentation mentioned very little about life for Palestinians in Gaza, while touting the supposed opportunities for real estate investment and tourist development. The plan, as well as the Board of Peace’s latest plan unveiled on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly last week, is contingent on the demilitarization of the Gaza Strip — which could leave room for Israel to seize permanent security control over Gaza, as Israeli leaders have worked toward.
Kushner has brushed off the idea that conflicts of interest are a problem at all.
“What people call conflicts of interests, Steve and I call experience and trusted relationships,” he told “60 Minutes” in October 2025.
At the same time, Kushner has openly said that the political future of Gaza and Israel’s military — over which he has enormous influence — impacts his firm’s financial decisions. In September 2025, CNN notes, Kushner told the podcast “No Priors” that he believes that Arabs and Israelis “forget about everything else” when he guides them into talking about business opportunities.
“My investors from the Middle East are now looking at Israel, and they’re saying, ‘Wait a minute, maybe there’s a benefit to having these wars done,’” he said.
Kushner went on to discuss his interest in Phoenix in particular. “At the time we made the decision, we had very intense discussions in our investment committee because they said, ‘Look there’s about to be a war in the country,’ which is what we kind of thought was going to happen, and said, ‘How do we explain this to the investors if it goes wrong?’ And I said, ‘Well number one, it’s not a bad thing to have them more vested in the economy of Israel now.’”
Kushner is already facing congressional inquiries related to his financial entanglements in the Middle East as he conducts negotiations across the region. Affinity’s biggest clients are the sovereign wealth funds run by the Gulf states — the very governments that he negotiates with in his role for the White House.
The New York Times reported in March that Kushner spoke to government figures about raising $5 billion or more for Affinity Partners while he was conducting negotiations with Middle East leaders amid the early stages of the U.S.’s war on Iran.
“The degree of shamelessness is unprecedented,” Jeff Hauser, founder and executive director for Revolving Door Project, told Truthout earlier this year. “The degree of unity among elected Republicans to not speak about the Trump progeny, and their corruption, is the worst conspiracy of silence in American political history.”
Jared Kushner’s private equity company reportedly has major stakes in companies that provide weapons to the Israeli military, as new reporting reveals the latest conflict of interest concerns with regard to Kushner’s role as a top Middle East negotiator for President Donald Trump, including on the Gaza genocide.
A CNN investigation published Thursday finds that Kushner’s company, Affinity Partners, holds the largest stake in a Tel Aviv-based firm called Phoenix Financial. The report, which analyzed just a fraction of Phoenix’s holdings, shows that the firm holds over $450 million across nine companies that provide weapons or equipment to the Israeli military.
The firm’s largest investment related to the Israeli military is in Elbit Systems, which is Israel’s largest weapons manufacturer, with $265 million in holdings. Its next three biggest holdings in this realm are $68 million in Next Vision, which sells cameras for attack drones; $56 million in Bet Shemesh Engines, which makes engines for military aircraft; and $40 million in Reshef Technologies, which makes electronic fuzes for artillery shells that have been used in Gaza.
Its other investments include roughly millions of dollars in Boeing, which makes bombs and bomb kits used by Israel in Gaza, and Caterpillar, whose bulldozers are used by the Israeli military to raze civilian infrastructure in Gaza and the occupied West Bank.
“All nine companies identified by CNN saw their stock value climb last year, with many stating the war in Gaza had driven demand for their businesses,” the report found.
Affinity, which Kushner is the sole owner of, bought a 5 percent stake in Phoenix in 2024, as Israel’s genocide was reaching a high point. It then doubled its stake in the firm just before Trump was sworn into office in 2025, becoming Phoenix’s biggest shareholder.
“Investing in Phoenix in July 2024 was a decision rooted in my belief in Israel’s resiliency and the fundamentals of Phoenix’s business,” Kushner told Bloomberg at the time.
The report raises concerns about Kushner’s true motivations and conflicts of interest in his work conducting negotiations on Gaza and beyond. As a lead negotiator on Gaza, executive board member of Trump’s “Board of Peace,” and Trump’s son-in-law, Kushner has enormous influence over Israel’s genocidal campaign in Gaza, as well as the financial future of the enclave.
In January, Kushner unveiled his plan for “New Gaza” that contains a dystopic vision of a technocapitalist future for the area at the World Economic Forum. His presentation mentioned very little about life for Palestinians in Gaza, while touting the supposed opportunities for real estate investment and tourist development. The plan, as well as the Board of Peace’s latest plan unveiled on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly last week, is contingent on the demilitarization of the Gaza Strip — which could leave room for Israel to seize permanent security control over Gaza, as Israeli leaders have worked toward.
Kushner has brushed off the idea that conflicts of interest are a problem at all.
“What people call conflicts of interests, Steve and I call experience and trusted relationships,” he told “60 Minutes” in October 2025.
At the same time, Kushner has openly said that the political future of Gaza and Israel’s military — over which he has enormous influence — impacts his firm’s financial decisions. In September 2025, CNN notes, Kushner told the podcast “No Priors” that he believes that Arabs and Israelis “forget about everything else” when he guides them into talking about business opportunities.
“My investors from the Middle East are now looking at Israel, and they’re saying, ‘Wait a minute, maybe there’s a benefit to having these wars done,’” he said.
Kushner went on to discuss his interest in Phoenix in particular. “At the time we made the decision, we had very intense discussions in our investment committee because they said, ‘Look there’s about to be a war in the country,’ which is what we kind of thought was going to happen, and said, ‘How do we explain this to the investors if it goes wrong?’ And I said, ‘Well number one, it’s not a bad thing to have them more vested in the economy of Israel now.’”
Kushner is already facing congressional inquiries related to his financial entanglements in the Middle East as he conducts negotiations across the region. Affinity’s biggest clients are the sovereign wealth funds run by the Gulf states — the very governments that he negotiates with in his role for the White House.
The New York Times reported in March that Kushner spoke to government figures about raising $5 billion or more for Affinity Partners while he was conducting negotiations with Middle East leaders amid the early stages of the U.S.’s war on Iran.
“The degree of shamelessness is unprecedented,” Jeff Hauser, founder and executive director for Revolving Door Project, told Truthout earlier this year. “The degree of unity among elected Republicans to not speak about the Trump progeny, and their corruption, is the worst conspiracy of silence in American political history.”
Bennito L. Kelty
October 1, 2026
RAW STORY
Former Trump White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham flagged Jared Kushner's 'volunteer' status (CNN/Screenshot)
A former Trump White House press secretary says Jared Kushner's "volunteer" role with the current administration lets him avoid disclosing how much money he makes.
During a Thursday interview with CNN anchor Erin Burnett, Stephanie Grisham made the claim following a CNN investigation into Kushner's financial ties to an Israeli company with stakes in firms that have seen business grow from the war in Gaza. According to CNN, Kushner's investment firm, Affinity Partners, is the largest shareholder in Phoenix Financial, which holds stakes worth more than $456 million in Israeli defense companies.
"None of this surprises me," Grisham said. "I recall back in our Trump administration, he had his hands in everything."
She also recalled how Kushner talked about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
"I remember he used to bring Bibi up as if it was just like an old guy he plays basketball with. He would drop his name so casually," she said. "Jared had a way of, you know, making it seem like he was this mover and shaker, and don't worry, he'll fix everything."
Grisham then pointed to Affinity's growth since Kushner left the White House.
"After the first Trump administration, as you guys probably know, Affinity Partners was committed $2 billion from Saudi Arabia. And now I believe its assets are around $6 billion," she said. "Meanwhile, he's calling himself a volunteer. I mean, that's great volunteer work if you can get it, I guess."
She added, "I don't mean to be glib, but the reason he's a volunteer is because you don't have to then claim and show a lot of the money that you make during the time as a temporary public worker."
Asked whether the arrangement fit Kushner's past claim that "what people call conflicts of interest, I call experience and trusted relationships," Grisham said it didn't.
