DHS denies FEMA policy tying disaster relief to Israel

The Department of Homeland Security appears to have changed its policy that previously withheld disaster relief from cities that boycott Israel.

The original policy said the Federal Emergency Management Agency would withhold funding for a city or state that was found to have cut or limited its "commercial relations" with Israel. Following online controversy, the DHS issued a statement saying there were no FEMA requirements tethered to Israel and apparently updated its policy, removing the excerpt about boycotting Israel.

'Those who engage in racial discrimination should not receive a single dollar of federal funding.'

"There is NO FEMA requirement tied to Israel in any current [notice of funding opportunity]," the DHS statement reads. "No states have lost funding, and no new conditions have been imposed."

Although the policy appears to have been updated, the DHS maintained that it will still enforce all anti-discrimination laws and policies.

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"FEMA grants remain governed by existing law and policy and not political litmus tests," the statement continues. "DHS will enforce all anti-discrimination laws and policies, including as it relates to the BDS movement, which is expressly grounded in antisemitism. Those who engage in racial discrimination should not receive a single dollar of federal funding."

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Photo by JASON CONNOLLY/AFP via Getty Images

The Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions movement is a pro-Palestinian movement advocating against Israel "occupying and colonizing Palestinian land, discriminating against Palestinian citizens of Israel, and denying Palestinian refugees the right to return to their homes," according to its website.

The DHS says the BDS movement is "expressly grounded in antisemitism," echoing the 34 states that have passed anti-BDS laws between 2014 and 2023, according to a report from the University of Pennsylvania Journal of Law and Social Change.

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