A German company that makes engines and transmissions for Israel's Merkava battle tank and Namer armored personnel carrier.
Renk AG is a German manufacturer of transmissions (gearboxes), engines, and vehicle suspension systems, whose products are integrated into multiple battle tanks and other military vehicles. Its MT-883 engine and RK-325 transmission are essential components of Israel's Merkava battle tank (Marks 4 and 5) as well as the Namer armored personnel carrier.
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 war 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 the RK-325, 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.
The Role of Renk
Renk assembles the Merkava and Namer MT-883 engines in the U.S., which allows Israel to receive them as a gift through the U.S. government Foreign Military Sales program. The engine is the most significant component of the Merkava that is made outside of Israel.
The engine factory, located in Muskegon, Michigan, was formerly owned by General Dynamics Land Systems, which is why they were previously designated as GD-883. The factory later operated under L-3/L3Harris, and Renk acquired it in 2021.
The engines were originally developed by German company MTU, which still manufactures many of the parts for them in Germany. MTU became a wholly-owned subsidiary of Rolls-Royce Holdings in 2014.
The RK-325 transmission system was originally developed by Renk. For years, it has been manufactured in Israel by Ashot Ashkelon under license from Renk. However, Renk has also been independently providing made-in-Germany gearboxes and other Merkava components to the Israeli military, as late as October 2024.