US quickly reverses pledge to link disaster funds to Israel boycott stance

Hours after posting it, Department of Homeland Security removes statement that funding is dependent on states not cutting ‘commercial relations’ with Israeli companies

By Reuters and ToI Staff 5 August 2025, 4:17 pm

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Illustrative: A man holds a sign during a rally in the War Room at the state Capitol on June 15, 2016, in Albany, New York (AP Photo/Mike Groll)

WASHINGTON — US President Donald Trump’s administration quickly reversed course Monday on compelling American cities and states to avoid boycotts of Israeli companies in order to receive disaster funds, according to a statement, and deleted the earlier policy from its website hours after it was posted.

The Department of Homeland Security removed its statement requiring states to certify they will not sever “commercial relations specifically with Israeli companies” to qualify for the funding.

Reuters reported earlier Monday that the language applied to at least $1.9 billion that states rely on to cover search-and-rescue equipment, emergency manager salaries, and backup power systems, among other expenses, according to 11 agency grant notices reviewed by the news agency.

This is a shift for the Trump administration, which has previously tried to penalize institutions that don’t align with its views on Israel or antisemitism.

The disaster funding requirement took aim at the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement, designed to put economic pressure on Israel to end its control of the West Bank and Gaza. The campaign’s supporters grew more vocal in 2023, after Hamas carried out its October 7 massacres in southern Israel, sparking the still ongoing war in Gaza.

“FEMA grants remain governed by existing law and policy and not political litmus tests,” said DHS Spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin in a statement on Monday afternoon.

Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin speaks during a news conference at ICE Headquarters, in Washington, May 21, 2025. (Jose Luis Magana/AP)

DHS oversees the Federal Emergency Management Agency. FEMA, in grant notices posted on Friday, said states must follow its “terms and conditions” to qualify for disaster preparation funding.

Those conditions required that they not support what the agency called a “discriminatory prohibited boycott,” a term defined as refusing to deal with “companies doing business in or with Israel.” The new terms, posted later on Monday, do not include that language.