The Qassam rocket is a simple, steel artillery rocket developed and deployed by the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military arm of Hamas. These rockets cannot be fired to target specific military objectives in or near civilian areas, and are "indiscriminate when used against targets in population centers".
Eight Qassam launchers, seven equipped with operating systems and one armed and ready to launch.
Rockets being exhibited
A Qassam rocket is displayed in Sderot town hall against a background of pictures of residents killed in rocket attacks
The Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, named after Izz ad-Din al-Qassam, is the military wing of the Palestinian organization Hamas. Currently led by Mohammed Deif, IQB is the largest and best-equipped militant group operating within Gaza today.
Izz ad-Din al-Qassam, Syrian Muslim preacher and leader in Arab nationalist resistance to British and French rule, a militant opponent of Zionism in the 1920s and 1930s
Qassam rockets launched from Gaza, on display at an Israeli police station at Sderot, 2009.
Al Qassam militants rappelling during a training exercise in Gaza, January 2013