The daughter of the deputy mayor of the northern city of Shafaram was killed in a car bombing on Tuesday evening.
Medics said when they arrived, the car had caught fire and declared 28-year-old Zohra Khanifs dead on the spot.
Police have started investigation into the attack and have put up a blockade in the area. There had been no arrest.
Preliminary investigation found that the explosive device was attached to the vehicle.
Her father, Faraj Khanifs, praised his daughter and suggested that she might be the target, although he said that he was unaware of any threats against her.
“She was a flower and didn’t harm anyone. Maybe he was looking for me, he would have found me instead,” he told the Cannes public broadcaster.
Scene of a car bombing that killed Johra Khanifs, June 7, 2022 (Fire and Rescue Services)
“It’s hard to digest, you think you’re in a nightmare. The Middle East is cruel, sometimes people pay the price for no injustice on their part,” he told Army Radio.
“Our hearts are broken, it is difficult for us to be at home without him,” he said in an interview with the Ynet news site. “I am a well-known social and political figure in Arab society, a public figure who has been elected for many years.
“I always help people without hesitation, and also lead a normal life. I did not expect the violence to reach me. I hope the police find the killers and bring them to justice.”
Zohra Khanifs gave an interview last year in which she condemned the violence in Arab communities.
She told Arab48 website in November, “Incidence of violence is one of the negatives we face, we feel insecure in our society and it hinders our progress in all walks of life and in members of Arab society. creates fear.”
According to Ynet, Zohra Khanifs was the granddaughter of Saleh Khanifs, a leader of the Druze community who served the country’s Second and Third Knessets as a member of the Progress and Action faction, which was associated with Mapai.
Arab communities have seen an increase in violence in recent years, driven primarily not only by organized crime, but also by violence. Arabs blame the Israeli police, which they say have failed to crack down on powerful criminal organizations and largely ignore violence, including family feuds, mafia turf wars and violence against women.
This community too has been a victim of neglect for decades.
The death of Zohra Khanifs was the 32nd murder in the Arab community, including five women, this year.
