Israel removes prophet’s tomb from Islamic waqf control

Israel issued an expropriation order for the Nabi Samuel archaeological and holy site north of Jerusalem, revered as the resting place of the biblical prophet Samuel.

By World Israel News Staff

Israel’s Civil Administration has removed control over the tomb of a biblical prophet from an Islamic trust (Waqf), placing the tomb under direct Israeli authority.

The Civil Administration issued an expropriation order earlier this month for roughly 110 dunams near Nabi Samuel, a prominent archaeological and religious site north of Jerusalem revered by Jews, Muslims and Christians as the traditional burial place of the biblical prophet Samuel.

The order, dated May 9 and reported this week by Israeli and Palestinian groups, says the land is being acquired for the “development and preservation of the archaeological site of the Tomb of the Prophet Samuel.”

The area includes access roads, agricultural land, a spring, archaeological remains and the mosque compound at the center of the site.

A Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) source told AFP that the move followed “the refusal of Waqf officials to cooperate with the procedures required for the renovation of the tomb compound.”

The site, known in Hebrew as Kever Shmuel Hanavi and in Arabic as Nabi Samwil, has long been religiously sensitive but relatively quiet.

The main building, whose current structure includes remains from the Crusader period, is used for both Jewish and Muslim prayer.

Muslim worship takes place on the entrance level, while a Jewish prayer area is located below.

The Israel Nature and Parks Authority describes Nabi Samuel Park as a site combining antiquities, terraced agricultural landscapes, a spring and orchards, with “the tomb of the prophet Samuel” at its center.

Its listed points of interest include Second Temple-era remains, a Crusader fortress, the tomb, Hannah’s Spring and remnants of mountain agriculture.

The Palestinian Authority and left-wing Israeli groups denounced the order, saying it would place a Muslim Waqf-owned religious compound and surrounding Palestinian lands under deeper Israeli control.

The Palestinian Foreign Ministry called the move “an extension of a colonial war against the land, the people and the Palestinian narrative” and urged international action against Israeli confiscation and annexation policies. The Jerusalem Governorate said the order covered land around Nabi Samuel and Beit Iksa and warned that the mosque faced a new stage of what it called “Judaization.”

Peace Now said the order was the first time the Civil Administration had expropriated a holy site owned by the Muslim Waqf in Judea and Samaria.

“Once again, we find ourselves confronting decisions by the Civil Administration, operating under Minister Smotrich, that are intended to expand and deepen annexation,” Peace Now said.

“From plans to expand settlements and unprecedented declarations of ‘state land,’ the Civil Administration has moved on to taking control of heritage sites and is now appropriating religious sites.”