It is unclear whether Keisi told welfare officials that her family members were threatening her, with Haaretz reporting that Keisi told welfare she was not being threatened and N12 reporting that the pressure from her family included threats.
Keisi's brother was arrested soon after police found her body, with her husband, from whom she was reportedly separated, arrested later in the day. The husband was arrested for obstructing the investigation into her death, Haaretz reported.
Welfare officials said that Keisi met with a social worker whose impression was that the situation did not require turning to police, Israeli media reported. The Welfare Ministry reported that Keisi was known to Eilat's center for the treatment and prevention of domestic violence due to abuse from her husband, Israeli media reported. The ministry went on to say that Keisi's siblings, one of whom is suspected of murdering her, visited her regularly and helped her financially.
An Eilat official told N12 that there was an understanding that the woman was under threat but that the murder was not prevented.
Keisi had previously complained to Israeli Police about violence from her family, primarily her husband, and the complaint had been addressed, N12 reported.
According to government data, a third of women killed by their partners in 2018 and 2019 had previously filed police complaints against the men accused of killing them. Six of the suspects in such murders between 2018 and 2020 had previous convictions related to domestic violence.
Some 25 women in Israel were killed by a partner or someone close to them in 2020 – and more than five Israeli women have been killed by a partner or family member so far this year.In 35% of cases where a woman's murder was defined as femicide (murder because they are women) and the relationship between the woman, her murderer was known, and officials were aware of the relationship, according to Israel's observatory on femicide. In 20% of these cases, a report was filed with police about domestic violence and in 10% of these cases the murderer served prison time for domestic violence and was released.
“The plan to combat domestic violence from 2017 has not yet been implemented and hundreds of thousands of women in Israel live in daily and incessant terror,” said Na’amat chairwoman Hagit Pe’er in reaction to the suspected murder of a woman in Haifa earlier this month.
Women's organization Slut Walk Tel Aviv expressed outrage, saying, "We would like to be surprised but we are so unsurprised. Women's lives are not taken seriously in the State of Israel. We are used to hearing about women who complained to the police and as a result of mishandling or ridiculous punishments, were abandoned to die."
Yardena Schwartz/JTA contributed to this report.