Attorney Raja Khatib, whose wife, two daughters, and another family member were killed in Saturday night’s Iranian attack on Tamra, told N12 News how he had learned about their demise and discussed his pain.
“I don’t wish this feeling on anyone,” he told N12. “It happened in seconds – they didn’t have time to get to safety. It was all so sudden. I lost my family in one instant.”
He lost his wife, Manar al-Qasem Abu al-Heija Khatib, her two daughters, Shada (20) and Hala (13), and their relative, Manar Diab Khatib.
The bereaved man described how, when arriving at the scene of the attack, alarms were already sounding.
“I saw my daughter, “ he said. “She looked confused but was unharmed. I asked her where her mother and sisters were, and she said they didn’t have time to go down to the shelter either.”
Wife, daughters' bodies remain trapped under rubble
He described trying to reach his family to no avail, as it was too late. “I tried to go upstairs, but I couldn’t. I realized they were gone,” he said.
“I don’t wish what I’m feeling right now on anyone, not even my worst enemy. It all happened in a matter of seconds,” he said.
His daughters’ and wife’s bodies remain trapped under rubble, with his family awaiting proper identification and burial.
“We are just waiting for the bodies to be identified so we can bury them with dignity,” Khatib said.
The attack happened just days after the Khatib family returned from a vacation to Italy. Unbeknownst to them, this would be their final journey together. “We only came back to Israel three days ago,” Khatib recalled.
“I took them to Italy to see my home, almost as if I was saying goodbye to them. I hugged them nonstop. Only Razan, our daughter who wasn’t with us, survived.”
He said he wished that they had stayed longer in Italy.
“I wish we had been delayed one more day, and our flight had been canceled,” he said. “I wish we had stayed there and avoided all of this.”
Shada was a law student at Haifa University. She was hoping to follow in her father’s footsteps, Khatib said.
“She wanted to be like me,” he said. “She would always tell me, ‘Dad, you are my role model.’ She was only 20 years old.”
“When the missile barrages began, Manar called Shada and asked her to come be with us in Tamra so as not to be alone in Haifa,” he continued.
“I lost my entire family. This was God’s will. It was all predecided,” Khatib continued.
He also expressed his condolences to all those impacted by the strike in Bat Yam.
“My heart aches for everyone who has been hurt,” he said. “These are hard days. There is nothing left to do but hope that this will end soon.”