Sheikh Izz ad-Din al-Qassam (Arabic: عزّ الدين القسّام) (1882-1935) was born in Latakia, Syria and immigrated to the British Mandate of Palestine. In 1928, he founded a radical militant group Black Hand (disambiguation) which attacked Jewish villages and is considered a terrorist organization by most historians. Qassam was tracked down and killed by the British in 1935.
Today, Hamas named its military divisions by his name. The Qassam rocket is named after the brigades who use them.
