The death of Kasem Abu al-Hija's daughter and granddaughters during a missile attack in northern Israel has ignited anger over the lack of adequate shelters in Arab communities. As the country struggles with internal divides, the disparity in resources and treatment of minorities becomes painfully evident.
Community in Mourning: Tragedy Exposes Deep Divide in Israeli Society
Community in Mourning: Tragedy Exposes Deep Divide in Israeli Society
In the aftermath of a missile strike that claimed the lives of four family members in an Arab-majority town, the anger and despair among residents reveal long-standing inequalities faced by Arab communities in Israel.
Kasem Abu al-Hija, a 67-year-old resident of Tamra, is grappling with profound loss after an Iranian missile hit his home on Saturday, killing his daughter Manar Khatib, 45; his granddaughters, Shada, 20, and Hala, 13; and their aunt, Manal Khatib, 41. Witnesses describe the horrific scene as debris from the collapsed building scattered along the street, with rescuers struggling to locate the family's bodies in the darkness, illuminated only by trails of blood.
Onlookers mourn alongside Kasem at a vigil, his heartache intensified by the knowledge that mere minutes after the missile strike, a video surfaced showing some Israelis celebrating the tragedy. In it, individuals were heard chanting a popular anti-Arab slogan, "May your village burn." This incident has drawn widespread condemnation across Israel, with President Isaac Herzog labeling such behavior "appalling and disgraceful."
Beyond his personal grief, Kasem and the residents of Tamra reflect on the broader issues facing their community, including a lack of public bomb shelters. While Tamra, an Arab-majority town with 38,000 residents, experiences the threat of rocket fire from nearby Hezbollah, the nearby Jewish-majority town Karmiel, which has a population of 55,000, boasts a striking 126 public shelters.
Discriminatory funding and planning restrictions have long left Arab communities like Tamra vulnerable, lacking the basic emergency preparedness that Jewish communities often take for granted. A 2018 report from Israel's State Comptroller revealed that about 25% of the overall population lacks access to a proper bomb shelter, but in non-Jewish local authorities, the proportion surged to nearly half.
Local activist Lital Piller highlights the historical neglect of Arab citizens, pointing to decades of lower state funding that affects various sectors, including emergency services, shelter access, education, and employment. Residents often need to rely on their neighbors for protection during missile strikes, as around 60% of homes in Tamra lack an individual safe room.
As nighttime falls in Tamra, panic ensues following missile alerts. Families rush into each other's homes, hoping for safety in shared locations as the sound of explosions fills the air. Many Arab Bedouin communities face even harsher realities, lacking recognized villages and missing vital infrastructure like bomb shelters, while poorer Jewish neighborhoods experience similar neglect.
Recent surveys indicate that 82.7% of Jewish Israelis support the attacks on Iran, while 67.9% of Arab Israelis oppose them, amplifying societal tensions. A stark divide, with 42.4% of the Arab population living below the poverty line illustrates a growing sense of alienation and neglect.
Though previous attempts to address these inequalities have been made, recent government budget cuts have gutted initiatives intended to improve the socio-economic conditions for Arab citizens. As the nation grapples with conflict derived from the recent Gaza war, citizens of Tamra feel increasingly marginalized.
As neighbors gather at a vigil mourning the fallen family, Kasem speaks of the need for unity in the face of adversity. "The bombs do not choose between Arabs or Jews," he asserts. "We must end this war. We must end it now."
