Dozens of residents protested Palm Beach County’s more than $1 billion investment in Israeli bonds during a county commission budget hearing Tuesday. Commissioners limited public comments to one minute per speaker, and seven people spoke before interruptions prompted a recess, according to the Miami New Times.
Mayor Sara Baxter said the bond investment was outside the scope of the budget hearing and could not be discussed, the New Times reported. Published accounts differ on the length of the recess: the New Times described a five-minute break that lasted about 10 minutes, while The Palm Beach Post reported that the disruptions produced a break of more than 30 minutes.
Professor was charged after protest
Noura Erakat, a Palestinian-American human rights lawyer and Rutgers University professor, was arrested and charged with trespassing in connection with the protest, according to the New Times. The outlet reported that she was handcuffed inside an elevator at the Palm Beach County Government Center, spent the night in the county jail and posted bond Wednesday morning. Palm Beach County deputies had not provided the New Times with an arrest report.
Rutgers identifies Erakat as a professor of Africana studies at its New Brunswick campus and an editorial committee member of the Journal for Palestine Studies. The university’s faculty profile lists her areas of specialization as human rights, humanitarian, national security and refugee law. The New Times reported that Erakat did not provide comment.
Palm Beach investment reached $1 billion
Palm Beach County’s investment in Israel bonds reached $1 billion in January, the New Times reported. The outlet attributed the increase to a $350.5 million purchase that month by suspended Palm Beach County Clerk Mike Caruso. It also reported that the Israel Bonds program was established by the Israeli government after the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack.
What county policy says
According to Palm Beach County’s February 2026 County Investment Policy, the county’s investment rules address liquidity, risk diversification, safety of principal, market return, maturity and investment quality. The Palm Beach County Clerk of the Circuit Court & Comptroller says the policy, created by the clerk and the County Investment Policy Committee, governs county investments and provides risk-management and reporting guidelines.
Miami-Dade vote raised a separate limit
The Palm Beach dispute followed a Sept. 1 vote by Miami-Dade commissioners to raise the maximum share of Israel bonds in the county’s investment portfolio from 3% to 5%, according to Local 10. Several opponents had their microphones cut or were escorted from the meeting, Local 10 and Florida Politics reported.
The Miami-Dade change permitted a larger allocation but did not require the county’s investment managers to purchase the bonds, according to the Miami Herald. As of June, about 1.5% of the county’s portfolio, or roughly $130 million, was invested in Israel bonds, according to Prism.
