A Palestinian militant jailed for illegally entering Britain and accused of calling for Jews to be slaughtered has asked to be deported from the country.
However, Abu Wadee—whose full name is Mosab Abdulkarim Al-Gassas—cannot currently be returned to Gaza because the Home Office has no safe way to transport him there.
Wadee arrived in Britain by small boat in March 2025 and was photographed making a V sign as a Border Force vessel approached. Soon afterwards, The Mail on Sunday identified him as a former militant who had called on Allah to “kill (Jews) one by one… don’t leave a single one”.
He was imprisoned for illegal entry two months later, then released in December and placed in asylum accommodation.
Wadee was traced to a property in Corby this week. He now says he no longer supports Hamas, claiming he only did so under pressure while in Gaza, and denies being antisemitic.
The 34-year-old, who is fitted with an electronic tag, was subsequently removed from the property and transferred to another location. From there, he has posted videos calling for his removal from Britain, citing the media attention surrounding his case.
In one video translated from Arabic for the Mail, Wadee said: “I am calling upon the Red Cross and human rights organisations all over the world to organise my removal from Britain. I wish to be relocated right now, before tomorrow.”
The Daily Mail understands that the Home Office is unable to deport him because Gaza remains an active conflict zone, despite a ceasefire reportedly having been in place for the past year.
Mosab Abdulkarim Al-Gassas, known as Abu Wadee, is seeking deportation from the UK after the press highlighted his alleged history as a Palestinian militant
Wadee, 34, belonged to the “Tyre-Burning Unit”, a Hamas-affiliated faction that threw rocks and firebombs at Israeli troops during border clashes in 2018
The Palestinian arrived in Britain by small boat in March, making a peace sign as the dinghy was met by a Border Force vessel
Despite his request to leave, Wadee continues to face demands for immediate deportation because of his criminal conviction and alleged history of militant activity.
While living in Gaza, Wadee was a member of the “Tyre-Burning Unit”, a Hamas-linked group active during the 2018 Great March of Return protests along the Israel-Gaza border. The unit threw rocks and firebombs at Israeli troops.
The Great March of Return began as a civilian protest movement but was soon strongly supported by Hamas. A 2019 UN report said the group had “encouraged or defended demonstrators’ use of incendiary kites and balloons”.
Contemporary images published by the press showed Wadee throwing rocks and posing with a tear-gas grenade in his mouth. On social media, he also shared videos that appeared to show him throwing pipe bombs towards Israeli forces.
He also boasted to Felesteen, a Hamas-affiliated newspaper in Gaza, about launching flaming kites into Israel. “The kite only costs us three shekels (75p), but in return it costs the occupation much more because of the fires it causes,” he said.
Other social-media posts showed him posing with assault rifles, including in front of a poster of Rouzan al-Najjar, a volunteer medic killed by Israeli troops in June 2018. He captioned one image: “Be a leader, for history does not remember the soldiers”.
Wadee now disputes that account, saying he worked as a construction worker in Gaza and was not affiliated with any faction. He claims the photographs showing him with guns were taken at weddings, where such displays are customary.
“They publish reports about me and bring old photos of me carrying a weapon while I was in Gaza… those photos were at weddings,” he said in one video.
“We all know our customs and traditions at weddings in Gaza. I do not belong to any faction.”
Wadee is seen leaving his asylum HMO in Corby earlier this week – an ankle tag visible beneath his trousers
Wadee posing with a pair of assault rifles in front of a photo of Rouzan al-Najjar, a volunteer medic killed by Israeli troops in June 2018. He claimed such photos were from celebratory occasions such as weddings
The Palestinian pictured amidst clashes with Israeli troops during the Great March of Return protests in 2018
In another clip, posted on Friday afternoon, Wadee alluded to his time in the Tyre-Burning Unit, but said this did not mark him out from other Palestinians.
‘All the people in Gaza participated in the Marches of Return; it does not mean that if you went to the Marches of Return, burned tires, or threw stones that you belonged to an organization or were affiliated with a faction,’ he said.
Wadee – who is thought to have taken 18 months to reach Britain – was traced by the Northamptonshire Telegraph to a housing estate in Corby after sharing videos of himself in the town on TikTok, often filmed on his own street.
He told the newspaper that he no longer supported Hamas, having done so under duress, and had Jewish friends.
‘No, no, no. I love England, I love Corby,’ he said, adding: ‘Everyone knows that Hamas is a terrorist organisation that would kill us if we didn’t speak against the Jews while living there.’
But the convicted criminal’s continued presence in Britain is putting pressure on Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, who just this week gave Palestinians a new legal route into Britain by re-opening the UK Resettlement Scheme.
Home Office staff have been ordered to flag Palestinian asylum claims for ‘reputational risk’, as revealed by the Mail this week.
It is thought the order came from mandarins after a former bodyguard to the leader of Hamas was allowed to remain in the UK following an immigration appeal.
Corby MP Lee Barron has written to Ms Mahmood demanding Wadee’s deportation, saying he had put ‘a target on the back’ of the town’s other asylum seekers.
How The Mail on Sunday first revealed Abu Wadee’s identity to the world in March 2025 – before he was arrested days later
Wadee posing with an AR-15-style assault rifle in a photo he shared on social media in 2021
A spokesman for the Campaign Against Antisemitism said: ‘It’s remarkable that we’ve got to a point where even Abu Wadee is asking to be deported, but the Government can’t even manage that.
‘This has been a complete farce from start to finish. In May 2025, Mr Wadee pleaded guilty to illegally entering the UK on a small boat after we identified him, but it’s October and he is still in our country.
‘It’s no wonder that British Jews have little faith in the authorities to protect our community when they can’t even get this right.’
The Home Office declined to comment on specifics concerning Abu Wadee, citing a longstanding policy not to comment on individual cases.
A government spokesman said: ‘Any foreign national who receives a prison sentence in the UK is referred for deportation at the earliest opportunity and will be barred from ever returning.
‘Over 11,000 foreign criminals including murderers and rapists have been returned or deported in the two years since the last election – a 41 per cent increase on the two years prior.’