Donald Trump reportedly hoarding Israeli artifacts as retrieval attempts fail

West Palm Beach, Florida - It looks like classified documents aren't the only thing former President Donald Trump took from the White House.

Former President Donald Trump allegedly took artifacts from the White House lent by Israel, and now the country wants them back.
Former President Donald Trump allegedly took artifacts from the White House lent by Israel, and now the country wants them back.  © KAMIL KRZACZYNSKI / AFP

According to Israeli news outlet Haaretz, Israeli authorities discovered a few months ago that several antiquities the country lent to the White House for a Hanukkah event in 2019 have somehow ended up at Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate.

A former director of the Israeli Antiquities Authority told the outlet that plans to retrieve the items, which included valuable ancient clay lamps, were derailed by the beginning of the pandemic.

The new director has been getting help from the Israeli government and Trump's former US ambassador to the nation in attempts to retrieve the artifacts.

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Trump was recently hit with 37 federal charges for allegedly taking dozens of classified documents before leaving the White House and obstructing attempts by authorities to retrieve them.

Photos included in the indictment showed stacks of boxes stashed in the ballroom and a bathroom at the estate, with some even falling over, clearly left unattended.

It's unclear if Trump has any knowledge that the artifacts are on his property, but it's also a mystery how they ended up there in the first place.

One source said they wouldn't be surprised if "the items Israel seeks are also eventually found in some bathroom."

Cover photo: KAMIL KRZACZYNSKI / AFP

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