This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
JERUSALEM – Middle East/Israel Morning Brief
U.S. State Department ends program that Hamas used for 'explosive condoms'
Secretary of State Marco Rubio's decision to freeze foreign aid over the weekend included pulling millions of dollars-worth of US funding for condoms in Gaza, Fox News Digital reported.
According to Israel Hayom, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt addressed the funding pause during her first briefing Tuesday. "That is a preposterous waste of taxpayer money. So that's what this pause is focused on, being good stewards of tax dollars," Leavitt said.
Over the past decade, Hamas has used condoms to create IED-carrying balloons that winds would fly into southern Israel, raising the alarm on schoolyards, farmlands, and highways.These improvised explosive devices burned thousands of hectares of land and caused extensive damage.
The State Department's review comes in response to President Donald Trump's executive order, "Reevaluating and Realigning United States Foreign Aid," issued last week directing a 90-day pause on most U.S. foreign assistance disbursed through the State Department.
American high-school coach hangs Palestinian flag, refuses to shake hands during basketball game against Jewish school
A Colorado high school is facing backlash after its basketball coach reportedly hung up a Palestinian flag during a game against a Jewish school and then refused to shake hands with the opposing coaches.
A boys basketball game between Lotus School For Excellence and Denver Academy of Torah last Wednesday showed flashes of anti-Semitism, particularly over the non-handshake postgame, Brandon Rattiner of the Jewish Community Relations Council said in an interview.
Rattiner, who was talking on behalf of the Denver Academy of Torah, called the actions disappointing and shocking.
"I think everybody in the Jewish community is very aware that there's been a rising tide of antisemitism since Oct. 7," he said in reference to Hamas' terror attack on Israel.
"And we've seen it in schools here and all throughout the country on many different occasions."
Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi criticized U.S. President Donald Trump's plan to relocate Palestinians from the Gaza Strip to other nations, countering with the suggestion Israelis should be resettled in Greenland, Iran International reported.
"My suggestion is different. Instead of Palestinians, expel Israelis and send them to Greenland so they can kill two birds with one stone," Araghchi said in an exclusive interview with Sky News.
