Ben Gvir vows to remove Ezzedine al-Qassam’s tomb in northern Israel

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir vows to remove the grave of Arab nationalist leader Ezzedine al-Qassam, whose tomb lies in Israel and whose name was given to the armed wing of the Hamas terror group.

Ben Gvir posts a video on X showing him accompanying security forces as they dismantled a prayer tent next to the grave of the Syrian-born militant.

Al-Qassam, who was killed in a firefight in 1935, fought against British and Zionist forces in Mandate Palestine before Israel’s creation in 1948.

His grave is situated near Haifa in northern Israel and has been vandalized on several occasions over the years.

“The tomb of arch-terrorist Ezzedine al-Qassam in Nesher must be removed. And yesterday at dawn, we took the first step,” Ben Gvir writes on X.

את קברו של הארכי טרוריסט עז א-דין אל-קסאם בנשר צריך להעיף. ואתמול לפנות בוקר עשינו את הצעד הראשון. ברה… pic.twitter.com/mgjSTG7Be4

— איתמר בן גביר (@itamarbengvir) December 11, 2025

The far-right minister had already called for the grave’s demolition during a parliamentary debate in August.

Israel Hayom reports that security forces also took down surveillance cameras around the burial site and removed a person guarding the premises.

When asked by AFP about the incident, Israeli police insisted they had not been involved and referred inquiries to the authority in charge of cemeteries.

In a Hamas statement, senior official Mahmoud Mardawi decries the threat as “an unprecedented level of transgression against sanctity and desecration of holy sites, and a violation of the sanctity of graves.”

“Targeting the grave of al-Qassam… is not merely an attack on a grave, but rather an attempt to erase the memory of a nation and remove a testament to our ongoing struggle,” the statement adds. “Extremism has become an official, declared policy, requiring international action to curb this barbarity.”