Police are investigating a video circulating online that appears to show young Haredi men dancing on the grave of David Ben-Gurion, Israel’s first prime minister, and his wife Paula.
The footage, shared Wednesday, sparked outrage among local authorities and heritage officials. Staff at the Ben-Gurion Heritage Institute in Sde Boker said they did not see the group at the time of the incident. The Dimona Police are attempting to verify the video and identify those involved.
The Ben-Gurion burial site, managed by the Israel Nature and Parks Authority, is equipped with security cameras, but they were reportedly not operational in recent days. There is no record of the youths arriving at the site and staff did not hear or witness the incident. Social media reports suggest the youths may be Americans.
The Ben-Gurion Heritage Institute condemned the act, calling it “serious” and “offensive” and said it harms the memory of Israel’s founding father and the core values of the state. The institute said the matter is under police investigation and pledged to cooperate with authorities to identify those responsible.
Orly Gilad, director of the Negev Mountain area at the Nature and Parks Authority, said the institute receives many visitors during the summer making it difficult to identify the individuals in the video. “Every morning staff conduct patrols at the site. There was no evidence indicating that an event as shown in the photo took place. I have filed a complaint with the Dimona Police. This is an unusual incident that should never have happened,” she said.
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Eran Doron, head of the Ramat Negev Regional Council and a resident of the institute, described the incident as “extremely serious,” if the video is authentic. He said Ben-Gurion’s grave, which is also a national park, attracts more than half a million visitors annually. Doron added: “Anyone who dances on his grave is, in effect, dancing on the very existence of the State of Israel. I expect the Israel Police to do everything possible to hold the perpetrators accountable.”