One person was killed, and three were wounded, following a hand grenade explosion in the northern Arab town of Kafr Manda on Saturday afternoon, Magen David Adom and Israel Police confirmed.
An initial report from MDA’s 101 emergency hotline said that four people were injured in the blast at 1:53 p.m., with paramedics evacuating them to Rambam Health Care Campus in Haifa and the Italian Hospital in Nazareth.
A woman, 51, named as Lina Qassem Zidan, was critically wounded and was evacuated while paramedics performed CPR; she was later pronounced dead at the hospital. Two other people, a man and a woman in their 50s, were in moderate condition, and a fourth person was lightly hurt.
In the footage obtained by Walla from the scene, the entrance to the business is seen shattered, with broken plates and other objects scattered outside the scene.
Israel Police officers who were called to the scene began collecting evidence and opened an investigation into the circumstances of the incident. Police have arrested three suspects in relation to the case. The police said "The vehicle used by the suspects was located and had been disposed of."
The police added that the background to the case and the circumstances are still being investigated.
MDA medic: Grenade blast victim ‘fighting for her life’
“When we arrived at the scene, we saw a commotion and several people who had been wounded. They told us they had been hurt by a grenade,” MDA paramedic Iyad Hibi said.
“We began treating all the wounded. A woman of about 60 was critically injured, and we immediately began resuscitation efforts, including chest compressions, ventilation, and medication. We evacuated her in an MDA mobile intensive care unit to the hospital in critical condition, and we are continuing to fight for her life,” he said.
“In addition, we evacuated two more wounded people in moderate condition and one in light condition from the scene.”
President Herzog calls on future governments to 'intensify fight against crime'
"I am shocked and heartbroken over the murder of the late Lina Qassem Zidan, 51, who was killed today in a grenade explosion when a grenade was thrown at a store in Kafr Manda - a tragic incident in which three other civilians were injured," President Isaac Herzog wrote on X/Twitter.
"Lina, may she rest in peace, is the 200th woman murdered in Arab society since the beginning of the year. This is a chilling and unthinkable figure, illustrating the depth of the crime and violence crisis in Arab society and the grave danger facing Israeli society as a whole."
"We must intensify the fight against this crime," he said. "Every government that takes office must act decisively and immediately against criminal organizations, lawbreakers, and illegal weapons."
"Human life is not expendable, and security is the state's fundamental duty to its citizens. At this difficult time, I wish to extend my condolences to Lina's family, may she rest in peace, and to all the residents of Kafr Manda, and to wish the injured a speedy recovery."
Jabareen blames 'bloodstained, neglectful government' for grenade attack
Chairman of the Joint List, MK Dr Yousef Jabareen wished condolences to Qassem's family in a post on X, accusing the government of having "lost all sense of responsibility for citizens’ lives and safety."
"I wish to extend my condolences to the family of the late Lina Qassem, who was murdered following the throwing of a grenade in Kafr Manda, and to wish the wounded a speedy recovery," Jabareen wrote. "Our hearts are torn again and again by the loss of another human life."
"200 people have been murdered since the beginning of the year. 200 times the criminal minister has smiled in the face of murder."
"Hundreds of thousands of illegal weapons are circulating in our society, and there is no law and no justice. Criminal organizations operate unhindered while the state stands by and abandons citizens’ lives," he wrote. "The bloodstained, neglectful government must go home, as soon as possible."
Speaking about his party's role in the new Knesset, Jabareen added, "We will do everything in our power, by every possible means, to bring about its removal and replace it with a government that will take responsibility, fight crime, and ensure personal security in Arab communities and for all citizens."
Joint List MK, leader of the Ta'al party, Ahmad Tibi also commented on the incident in a post on X, "An abhorrent crime in the village of Manda. The absence of conversations and personal security."
"This is the first item on our agenda," he added.
Politicians accuse government of failing to handle Arab sector crime
Chairman of the Democrats party, MK Yair Golan blamed the incident on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. In a statement on X, Golan wrote, "A grenade explodes in broad daylight in the village of Manda. One person killed and many wounded. This is what the Netanyahu government’s policy of abandonment looks like."
"Netanyahu put the lives of Israel’s Arab citizens at risk when he appointed Ben Gvir as national security minister. He abandoned them to criminal organizations. These organizations have grown stronger and flourished under the Netanyahu-Ben Gvir government - and today the threat looms over all of Israel."
"Netanyahu and Ben Gvir’s time is up," Golan added. "Now we need to put an end to this abandonment. We are here to make things right."
"We will form a government of change that will take responsibility, fight criminal organizations, and restore personal security to all Israeli citizens, Jews and Arabs alike."
Meanwhile, Rula Daood, co-chair of the Jewish-Arab party A Place for Us All, spoke about the incident and crime in the Arab sector, saying, "A woman was murdered, and three people were injured by a grenade that was thrown at a business in the village of Manda. I share the family's grief and wish the injured a speedy recovery."
"Each and every one of us has the right to enter a store in the neighborhood and return home safely," she said. "The government and the police are undermining the security of Arab citizens, and it is their responsibility to arrest those responsible, collect the illegal weapons, and dismantle the criminal organizations."
"The lives lost in the village of Manda cannot be brought back. The next disaster can be prevented," she added
Indictments following unrelated shooting at a house in the settlement
Last month, a separate shooting incident in the village of Manda was reported, which resulted in indictments being filed against both sides in the conflict. In that case, dozens of bullets were fired at the home of two brothers in the community. The shooter, who was seriously injured while fleeing the scene, was charged with weapons offenses, shooting in a residential area, malicious damage, and threats.
According to the indictment, on April 15, at around 1:55 a.m., two masked men riding a scooter arrived at the home of brothers Hassan and Rami Khosh in the village of Manda. There had been a previous dispute between the parties, and the two opened fire with dozens of bullets from an M-16 rifle and a pistol at the home and a vehicle parked outside. One of the brothers and his wife were in the home at the time of the shooting.
Immediately after the shooting, the two fled the scene on the scooter, but a short time later they slipped on the road, and the weapons fell from their hands. The scooter driver, Zidan Raad Taha, 19, was seriously injured in the fall, while his partner managed to escape.
The police investigation revealed that after the accident, the brothers arrived at the scene, picked up the weapons that had fallen on the road, and left. According to the police, they intended to use the weapons as a bargaining chip with the shooters in their dispute.
Taha was hospitalized for about two months at Rambam Hospital and underwent rehabilitation procedures. After recovering from his injury, he was arrested and questioned, and an indictment was later filed against him. His partner in the shooting, whose identity is known to the police, had not yet been arrested at the time of publication of the previous report.