The Trump administration insists that disavowing the boycott Israel movement isn’t a prerequisite for accessing $1.9 billion in disaster fund grants from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, as Reuters reported.
“There is no FEMA requirement tied to Israel in any current notice of funding opportunity,” a Homeland Security spokesperson told JNS. “No states have lost funding, and no new conditions have been imposed. FEMA grants remain governed by existing law and policy and not political litmus tests.”
The department “will enforce all anti-discrimination laws and policies, including as it relates to the BDS movement, which is expressly grounded in antisemitism,” the spokesperson said. “Those who engage in racial discrimination should not receive a single dollar of federal funding.”
The wire service reported that the Trump administration tied access to the grants to avoiding limiting commercial relations “specifically with Israeli companies or with companies doing business in or with Israel.”
