Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir arrives to a court hearing of the Shin Bet official arrested in suspicion of leaking classified information to a journalist and a Minister at the court in Lod, April 15, 2025. (Jonathan Shaul/Flash90)

(JTA) — A fundraiser with Itamar Ben-Gvir to be held at Brooklyn’s Jewish Children’s Museum was abruptly cancelled Friday, shortly after being announced.

The event featuring the far-right Israeli minister was to be hosted by Beis Shmuel Chabad, a Crown Heights synagogue, as a benefit for Chabad of Hebron, in the West Bank. Following a Jewish Telegraphic Agency report about the fundraiser, webpages advertising the event were taken down and prospective attendees were told it had been cancelled.

An organizer told Haaretz the cancellation was due to “unforeseen changes in the minister’s schedule.” 

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

Beis Shmuel Chabad, which follows Chabad practices but is not formally affiliated with the global Chabad-Lubavitch movement based in Crown Heights, and Chabad of Hebron, which is, did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the cancellation. 

A spokesperson for Chabad-Lubavitch said they were unaware of any other meetings scheduled between Ben-Gvir and Chabad officials during his trip.

The event had been one of only a few publicly announced stops less than a week out from Ben-Gvir’s first stateside visit. Shabtai, a Jewish society at Yale University, also plans to host multiple events with him: on Yale’s campus in New Haven, Connecticut; on New York’s Upper East Side; and a third potentially in Washington, D.C., according to Shabtai’s director, Rabbi Shmully Hecht.

Ben-Gvir’s itinerary is being closely scrutinized as he is the standard-bearer for Israel’s far right. An admirer of Meir Kahane, the late Jewish extremist, who has himself been convicted of providing support to a terror organization, Ben-Gvir and his Jewish Power party have called for the expulsion of “disloyal” Palestinians, the annexation of the West Bank and Jewish resettlement of Gaza. 

His installation in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s governing coalition in late 2022 spurred consternation among American Jewish groups and caused the Biden administration to consider a formal ban on his travel to the United States.

Now, as Ben-Gvir’s office says he plans to stop in the New York area, Washington, D.C. and Miami, several large American Jewish groups have told JTA they have no intention of meeting with him.

But at least one other, private event between the minister and American Jewish figures is also being planned, according to Jewish PR executive Ross Glick, who plans to attend one of the events but is not organizing it. Glick, who was until recently affiliated with the right-wing pro-Israel group Betar US, declined to provide more information. 

An organizer for UnXeptable, an Israeli protest movement organizing against Ben-Gvir’s visit, said in a statement he was “deeply gratified” to hear the event had been cancelled.

“Our coalition against Ben-Gvir and Kahanism grows day by day,” Offir Gutelzon said. “Itamar Ben-Gvir does not represent Judaism, Israel, or our community. He is beyond the pale.” A statement opposing the visit circulated by Gutelzon has been signed by several liberal Jewish groups as well as advocates for Israeli hostage families.

The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.

Readers like you make it all possible. We’re near the end of our Passover Fundraising Drive, and we have a very ambitious goal of $127,000 by April 21.

This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism you rely on. Make a Passover gift today!

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

Make a Passover Gift Today!

$90 $180

$360

Other amount