Donald Trump Agrees to Return Israeli Antiquities from Mar-a-Lago Club

Former President Donald Trump has agreed to return a collection of Israeli antiquities after the Israel Antiquities Authority protested their presence at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Florida.

According to a Wall Street Journal report, the treasures, which include ceramic oil lamps and coins, were intended to be presented to Trump at the White House during Hanukkah in 2019, put on temporary display, and then returned to Israel after a few weeks. But a State Department inspection delay and the Covid-19 pandemic meant that the collection ended up in the California home of private-equity executive Saul Fox, who then presented them to Trump at Mar-a-Lago in December 2021 after he had left office.

Fox says that he went ahead with presenting the collection to Trump despite an email from Israel Antiquities Authority Director Eli Eskozido requesting their return.

A spokesman for Trump told the WSJ Wednesday that they had not mishandled the artifacts.

“These historic items were presented by a representative of the Israeli antiquities authority with the full support of the organization,” the spokesman said. “As the items were displayed as originally intended, the office will be expediting their return to the organization’s representative.”

The antiquities saga comes as the former president faces 37 federal felony charges related to his retaining hundreds of classified documents in cardboard boxes at Mar-a-Lago after leaving office. Photos included in the indictment showed boxes with classified documents being stored in the club’s ballroom, a bathroom, and a series of storage rooms. Trump has pleaded not guilty, and the federal district judge in the case is currently considering a request by Trump’s lawyers to delay the trial until after the 2024 presidential election.

The post Donald Trump Agrees to Return Israeli Antiquities from Mar-a-Lago Club first appeared on Algemeiner.com.