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Donald Trump was not to be seen in the photos from his granddaughter's weekend bat mitzvah celebration in Miami that daughter Ivanka Trump shared on Instagram on Monday.
The images were posted as her father, the frontrunner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, is set to make his first court appearance in Miami on Tuesday. Donald Trump faces a historic criminal case charging him with hoarding top-secret government documents. He denies all felony counts, branding it a "witch hunt."
"With an abundance of love and immense pride, Jared and I celebrated our daughter Arabella's Bat Mitzvah this past weekend," Ivanka Trump wrote in the caption. "We reflect on the weekend with full hearts and an abundance of joy and gratitude."
The carousel post included a family photo with Ivanka Trump and her husband, Jared Kushner, standing next to their daughter. The image included Ivanka's siblings Eric and Donald Jr. and half-sister Tiffany, along with their partners and Donald Jr.'s ex-wife, Vanessa Trump. However, Donald and Melania Trump, as well as their son Barron, were notably absent.
Ivanka lives with her family in Miami, and some photos included in the post appeared to have been taken outside their home there. While Ivanka did not tag a location, Eric Trump's wife, Lara, marked the location as Miami. Donald Jr.'s fiancee, Kimberly Guilfoyle, tagged Trump National Doral Miami, indicating the celebration took place at the former president's golf club and resort.
Ivanka Trump appeared to confirm her father's absence by relegating photos of him to the end of her Instagram Stories about the celebration. The caption on one photo reveals they were taken at a birthday dinner that Donald Trump hosted for Arabella at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida a few weeks ago.
After scrolling through almost 20 photos on her Stories, which disappear after 24 hours, there is a photo of the former president giving a thumbs-up next to Arabella. Another showed her sat at a table with a smiling Donald and Melania Trump seated at either side, while Ivanka and her husband stand behind.
"Thank you Dad and Melania for throwing Arabella the sweetest birthday dinner at Mar-a-lago a few weeks ago in advance of her Bat Mitzvah!" Ivanka Trump captioned that image. "It was very special. We love you both so much!"
Ivanka Trump was a senior adviser during her father's term as president, but has distanced herself from his current bid to regain the White House. She skipped his 2024 campaign announcement in November. She issued a statement that she "does not plan to be involved in politics" and "while I will always love and support my father, going forward I will do so outside of the political arena."
A 49-page indictment unsealed on Friday revealed that Donald Trump faces 37 felony counts that could result in a substantial prison sentence in the event of a conviction. Thirty-one counts pertain to the willful retention of national defense information, the balance relating to alleged conspiracy, obstruction and false statements,
The indictment centers on hundreds of classified documents that Trump took with him from the White House to Mar-a-Lago upon leaving office in January 2021.
The former president spent the weekend insisting that he has done nothing wrong and was the victim of a political persecution. He is continuing to campaign, delivering remarks at state GOP conventions in Georgia and North Carolina.
Trump arrived at his Miami resort on Monday, and will head to his Bedminster, New Jersey, golf club after his court appearance to deliver a speech on Tuesday night.
Newsweek has contacted representatives for Donald Trump and Ivanka Trump for comment via email.
About the writer
Khaleda Rahman is Newsweek's National Correspondent based in London, UK. Her focus is reporting on education and national news. Khaleda ... Read more