Above photo: Rep. Brian Mast meeting Itamar Ben-Gvir in Washington. Twitter.
But What Was He Actually Doing Here?
Itamar Ben-Gvir’s visit to the United States sparked protest and generated violence against pro-Palestine protesters, but that didn’t stop GOP lawmakers from meeting with the extremist far-right politician.
The Israeli far-right national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, has wrapped up his weeklong visit to the United States.
The settler leader’s trip drew protests and generated violence, but these developments didn’t stop Ben-Gvir from meeting with Republican lawmakers at President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort and the U.S. Capitol.
Ben-Gvir has previously been convicted of supporting terrorism and inciting anti-Arab racism. Before running for office, he kept a picture of Baruch Goldstein, the Israeli religious extremist who murdered 29 Palestinian people in a Mosque, hanging in his living room.
In 2023, Ben-Gvir told a reporter that, “My right, and my wife’s and my children’s right, to get around on the roads in Judea and Samaria is more important than the right to movement for Arabs,” referring to the Israeli term for the occupied West Bank. He has consistently bragged about helping to impede a ceasefire in Gaza.
Capitol Visit
On his last day in the United States, Ben-Gvir met with four Republican Representatives: House Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan (R-OH), Friends of Judea and Samaria Caucus head Claudia Tenney (R-NY), Middle East and North Africa Subcommittee chair Mike Lawler, and House Foreign Affairs Committee Brian Mast (R-FL).
The House Foreign Affairs Committee shared a picture of Mast, who volunteered with the Israeli army despite growing up in Michigan, receiving an award from Ben-Gvir.
“On behalf of the state of Israel, with compliments,” it reads.
Chairman @RepBrianMast met with @itamarbengvir today to discuss America’s shared national security interests with Israel. pic.twitter.com/tMDDmRdn0b
— House Foreign Affairs Committee Majority (@HouseForeignGOP) April 28, 2025
Ben Gvir said multiple GOP lawmakers updated him on efforts to crack down on Palestinian organizations in the United States.
“They wanted to get to know me and I think they really liked what they heard,” he told reporters.
Ben-Gvir didn’t meet with any members of the Trump administration, but he did visit Mar-a-Lago last week to chat with lawmakers and business leaders. In a statement released after the appearance, he claimed that senior Republicans supported “his clear position on how to act in Gaza, and that the food and aid warehouses should be bombed.”
“I see the reports about the debate over who should bring ‘humanitarian’ aid into Gaza,” said Ben-Gvir in a later statement on the issue. “Well, it’s a fundamentally stupid debate, because the entire Strip should not receive any ounce of aid as long as our hostages are being held there.”
Ben-Gvir was confronted by pro-Palestine protesters during his Washington visit, including the antiwar organization CODEPINK.
The group shared a video of Ben-Gvir screaming at the activists, claiming that they kill babies and “support 9/11.”
“He completely lost it,” CODEPINK tweeted. “His violent, irritable reaction to peaceful protest shows exactly the kind of brutality he unleashes on Palestinians every day.”
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Appearances At Yale, New York Leave Trail Of Violence
His appearance near Yale University on Wednesday drew hundreds of protesters and multiple resignations from Shabtai, the Jewish leadership society that hosted his talk.
Yale students erected an encampment in opposition to his visit, which led to the school revoking Yalies4Palestine’s status as a registered student organization.
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While Ben-Gvir was attending a private event at a Manhattan steakhouse on Thursday a protester who had been hiding in the bathroom rushed out to confront him.
“Get the (expletive) out of New York!” he yelled, telling the security minister that he will be “remembered as a Nazi” before being dragged away by security.
That same night, an appearance by Ben-Gvir at the global headquarters of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement in Crown Heights, drew demonstrators and Zionist counter-protesters.
A woman, reportedly unconnected to the protest, visited the protest site after hearing helicopters outside her Brooklyn apartment and was attacked by a pro-Israel mob.
“As soon as I pulled up my scarf, a group of 100 men came over immediately and encircled me,” the woman told the AP. “They were shouting at me, threatening to rape me, chanting ‘death to Arabs.’ I thought the police would protect me from the mob, but they did nothing to intervene.”
ZI0NISTS in NYC yelling “D€ATH TO ARABS” while kicking & harassing a lone woman…. pic.twitter.com/6mNWKQUfzz
— The Resonance (@Partisan_12) April 25, 2025
“I’m afraid to move around the neighborhood where I’ve lived for a decade,” she continued. “It doesn’t seem like anyone in any position of power really cares.”
Another video from the same evening shows a protester being beaten bloody by the mob.
“the only thing that gives me some joy is that while all the zios were celebrating and laughing at me im over here thinking yall hit a Jew w. a damn israhelli passport!!! great job”
A NY woman shares on Instagram in a post that she is Jewish and has an Israeli passport and was… https://t.co/scYrqVaWdz pic.twitter.com/LzqbpVJQoo
— Drop Site (@DropSiteNews) April 26, 2025
In a statement ostensibly condemning the attacks, New York City Mayor Eric Adams implied that Palestine protesters had initiated the violence and omitted any mention of Ben-Gvir’s visit or the reason behind the initial protests.
Hate has no place in New York City. pic.twitter.com/8wlliBFjMx
— Mayor Eric Adams (@NYCMayor) April 27, 2025
Ben-Gvir shrugged off a question about the attack when asked about it by a reporter.
“The same violent folks of Yale, they have followed us throughout this tour. They tried to strike at Chabad Hasidim,” he claimed. “They came to be violent. And I’m thankful that the Chabad community welcomed us in. There were thousands of supporters.”
“You saw on the 7th of October. It came from one side onto the other side,” he continued. “Those that murdered and did all that bad stuff, they don’t just want to murder me. And not just Israel. They were in the 9/11. They want to strike at America. They want to strike you.”