Ben Gvir Asked to Give Fingerprints for U.S. Visa Despite Diplomatic Status

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir has been asked to appear at the U.S. Embassy in Israel and provide fingerprints as part of a visa application, according to a report on Channel 13. The request is unusual because, like other cabinet ministers, he would normally be eligible for a diplomatic visa and, as a holder of a diplomatic passport, would not typically go through the same bureaucracy as ordinary applicants.

The report said Ben Gvir is expected to travel to the United States for a private event and to hold what was described as a political meeting. The article did not specify when the trip will take place.

Ben Gvir's office said he chose not to use his ministerial status and instead requested a regular visa, even though he could have applied for a diplomatic one. His office said, “Every Israeli citizen who applies for a U.S. visa is required to give fingerprints. Minister Ben Gvir is not above the people, and since most of the trip is private, he chose not to use his status as a minister and asked for a regular visa בדיוק like any citizen.”

The office later added a sharper response, accusing critics of attacking him for behaving like an ordinary person. “Instead of praising a minister who acts like everyone else and does not ask for special treatment, you are wondering why he did not use his status. There is no limit to the persecution and the attempt to turn everything into a headline,” it said.