‘Our blood isn’t tomato juice’: Families of Arab homicide victims demand action at Knesset

Families of Arab homicide victims speak at a press conference in the Knesset, 26 January 2026

Noa Shpigel reports in Haaretz on 27 January 2026:

Families of Arab homicide victims criticized the Israeli government’s failure to tackle crime in the Arab community Monday, saying the administration treats their community’s blood as “tomato juice.”

Speaking at a Knesset press conference organized by the Abraham Initiatives, an NGO promoting equality for Arab citizens, the families shared their testimonies alongside lawmakers from the United Arab List, Hadash-Ta’al, and the Democrats party.

Qasem Awad, whose son, Dr. Abdullah Awad, was shot dead at a pediatric clinic in Kafr Yasif in 2025, said that the current government “sees the blood of the Arab citizen as ‘tomato juice,'” as he described how masked gunmen entered the clinic as he was treating a mother and her children. “A whole year [has passed] and the Israel Police hasn’t told me of any progress in the investigation,” he said.

Likud lawmaker Tally Gotliv interrupted Hatem Abu Fani, whose son was murdered, shouting that the Arab community must “disarm themselves” as she walked past the briefing.

Abraham Initiatives co-Executive Director Amnon Be’eri-Sulitzeanu warned that crime in the Arab community was “a strategic threat to Israeli society,” as he presented a 12-point plan to fight crime. He accused the ministers responsible of “launching an attack against the public.”

A relative of the late Ali Abu Salah demanded the government and lawmakers support the Arab community and work to eradicate the violence. “The Knesset must do what is possible,” he said.

Meanwhile, the death toll amongst the Arab-Israeli community continues to rise. On Sunday, a 17-year-old was shot to death and a 16-year-old was moderately wounded by gunfire on a road outside of the southern Israeli town of Lakiya.

Nineteen homicides have been recorded since the start of the year, 16 of which occurred within the Arab community. On average, an Arab citizen of Israel was murdered every 36 hours in 2025.

The annual homicide toll has surged since Itamar Ben-Gvir took office as national security minister in late 2022. Records show 249 Arab citizens of Israel were killed in 2025, compared to 233 in 2024 and 242 in 2023. By contrast, under former minister Omer Bar-Lev, the 2022 homicide toll in the Arab community stood at 108.

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