Ben-Gvir's Prison-Cell Video Threatens Long-Serving Hamas Inmate — Palestinians Denounce 'Degradation' Ahead Of Election

Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has drawn sharp criticism after posting a video on X showing him inside the cell of Hamas inmate Hassan Salama, telling the long-held prisoner, "I want to kill you... I want you executed," while flanked by security personnel. Ben-Gvir said the footage was recorded about two weeks earlier.

Raed Abu al-Hummus, head of the Palestinian Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs, condemned the footage on Monday, saying it showed that "degradation and depravity have reached their highest levels," and described conditions in Israeli prisons as "organised terrorism."

"The footage published by Ben-Gvir shows that degradation and depravity have reached their highest levels." — Raed Abu al-Hummus

Salama has been held by Israel for roughly 30 years and is serving multiple life sentences for his role in a series of attacks in 1996, including bus bombings. Palestinian officials and rights groups criticized the minister's visit as an abusive display directed at a handcuffed, long-imprisoned detainee.

The Palestinian Prisoners Media Office called Ben-Gvir's appearance "a cheap political and electoral stunt" ahead of Israel's October 27 elections and labelled it a "cowardly act of bullying against a defenseless and handcuffed prisoner," adding that Israeli authorities bear full responsibility for Salama's safety while in custody.

Hamas said the threat "signals new crimes" against Palestinian detainees and reiterated its pledge to pursue efforts to secure prisoner releases.

Context and Record

Observers noted the video adds to a pattern of provocative actions and rhetoric by Ben-Gvir. In August he posted footage entering cells holding Palestinian women and boasting about conditions; last year he was filmed taunting long-imprisoned Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti in his cell.

In March, Israel's Knesset approved legislation permitting the death penalty for Palestinian prisoners in certain cases — a measure strongly supported by Ben-Gvir and his Jewish Power party — while the law does not extend the death penalty to Jewish Israeli citizens. The move prompted criticism and protests from regional governments and rights organizations.

Ben-Gvir has also proposed broader, controversial policies toward Palestinians, including a seven-year plan dubbed "Disengagement 710," which he described as encouraging the "voluntary emigration" of Gaza's roughly two million residents, and the creation of a migration ministry to facilitate such population movement if re-elected. He has backed annexation plans for parts of the occupied West Bank and authorised expanded gun licences in 18 additional settlements this year — actions that critics say violate international law.

The video and the minister's wider platform have raised concerns among Palestinians and international observers about the treatment of detainees, the escalation of inflammatory rhetoric by public officials, and the potential human-rights consequences of recent legislative and policy proposals.