A woman wanted to buy sweets for her granddaughter’s birthday and fell victim to what appears to be a criminal attack. Unknown perpetrators threw a grenade at a confectionery in the Arab village of Kafr Manda in northern Israel. Lina Qassem Zidan, 51, was killed, and at least three other people were injured, including her husband.
The woman from Daliyat al-Karmel was out with her husband to shop for her granddaughter’s second birthday. According to her family, she was the household’s primary breadwinner, as her husband is unable to work due to a disability. The couple has five children.
Police arrested three suspects shortly after the attack. The vehicle allegedly used as a getaway car was also found. Initial speculation suggests the attack may have been intended for someone else. The exact background is still under investigation.
More than 200 deaths already this year
According to the organization Abraham Initiatives, Lina Qassem Zidan was the 200th victim of deadly criminal violence in Israel’s Arab society since the beginning of the year. Just a few hours later, another man was shot dead in the Arab city of Taibeh, bringing the total to 201.
The trend has been alarming for years. While 71 people in Arab society fell victim to deadly violence in 2018, the number rose to 244 in 2023. It has remained exceptionally high in the years that followed.
Arab citizens make up approximately one fifth of Israel’s population, yet they accounted for more than 80 percent of homicides last year. The violence is concentrated particularly in Arab towns and villages in the north and center of the country.
הפקרת החברה הערבית | ארבעה בני אדם נפצעו מפיצוץ רימון שהושלך לעבר בית עסק בכפר מנדא. בין הפצועים אישה כבת 60 במצב אנוש, שמבוצעות בה פעולות החייאה.
(אור רביד, חדשות 12) https://t.co/j5yYjh8kqf
— חדר מלחמה (@waroomisrael) November 14, 2026
Organized crime, family conflicts and illegal weapons
The violence stems from a variety of causes. Organized criminal groups play a significant role, earning money through extortion, illegal loans and other criminal activities, among other things. Disputes between rival groups can lead to long-lasting feuds.
There are also violent altercations between families and clans, personal conflicts and domestic violence. Not all homicides are therefore connected to organized crime.
Another problem is the large number of illegal firearms. These facilitate the escalation of conflicts and are used by criminal groups to intimidate their opponents.
The low clearance rate for many murder cases has also been criticized for years. Representatives of Arab communities complain that perpetrators are frequently not held accountable. At the same time, fear of retaliation and a lack of trust in the police make it difficult for witnesses to cooperate with investigators.
Economic and social problems add to the picture. Poverty, unemployment, inadequate municipal infrastructure and a lack of future prospects can increase vulnerability to criminal networks. However, these factors do not explain every individual crime and do not absolve perpetrators of their responsibility.
In Kafr Manda, residents had already reported a series of shootings and grenade attacks before the deadly assault. According to them, the escalating violence had been visible for weeks.
Criticism of the government and police
The increasing violence has also become a significant political flashpoint. Arab politicians and civil rights organizations accuse Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu‘s government of failing to adequately ensure the safety of the Arab population.
Particular criticism is directed at the Minister of National Security responsible for the police, Itamar Ben-Gvir. The Abraham Initiatives organization points out that the annual number of homicides has roughly doubled since he took office at the end of 2022. It accuses him of neglecting measures to combat organized crime. Ben-Gvir and his party reject this criticism and point to increased police operations.
The leader of the Arab party Ta’al, Ahmad Tibi, also described the violence in Kafr Manda as an expression of a failure of security. Combating crime must become one of the new Knesset’s most important tasks, he said.
Police Commissioner Daniel Levy visited the scene and promised to hold those responsible to account. He acknowledged that the death of the innocent woman was a severe blow despite the police’s efforts.
President Herzog calls for decisive action
President Isaac Herzog also responded to the woman’s death. The figure of 200 fatalities was shocking and demonstrated the scale of the violence crisis in Arab society.
“We must intensify the fight against this criminality,” Herzog declared. Every new government must act decisively and without delay against criminal organizations, lawbreakers and illegal weapons.
“Human lives are not worthless, and security is the state’s fundamental duty to its citizens,” the president emphasized.
The victim’s family also called for more decisive action. A relative warned that the violence would not remain confined to Arab communities if the authorities failed to bring criminal organizations under control.
Police are continuing their investigation into the attack in Kafr Manda. Whether the three arrested suspects were directly involved in the act and who the actual target of the attack was has yet to be determined.
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