Elon Musk recently retracted his earlier social media claim that the U.S. government sent $50 million worth of condoms to Gaza. The claim sparked a flurry of online debate after White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, known for her controversial statements, claimed that $50 million in taxpayer money was earmarked for providing condoms in Gaza. This raised eyebrows and questions about such a substantial expenditure on this specific initiative.
Though the U.S. government does indeed supply condoms to various regions for healthcare purposes, the amount is significantly less than $50 million and is typically directed toward African nations.
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) clarified in a statement that it funded approximately $7.1 million worth of male condoms and $1.1 million worth of female condoms globally, with the vast majority supplied to countries in Africa, according to federal records.
Musk faced criticism for disseminating misinformation to his large following on the social media platform X.
In response to the backlash, he acknowledged: "Some of the things that I say will be incorrect and should be corrected."
During a press conference in the Oval Office with Donald Trump, Musk added, "But I'm really not sure we should be sending $50 million worth of condoms anywhere. That really is an enormously large number of condoms."