Teen girl killed by stray gunfire in northern village while in her bedroom

A 17-year-old girl was killed by gunfire overnight Tuesday in the northern village Kafr Kanna.

Police were said to believe Razan Abbas was likely killed by stray gunfire.

Abbas was found critically wounded in her bedroom and was taken to a hospital in Nazareth, where she was declared dead.

Six people were arrested on Wednesday morning in connection with the girl’s shooting. Police said they were continuing searches of the area.

According to Hebrew-language media, there had been reports of gunfire at a number of homes nearby.

A friend told the Ynet news site that Abbas was about to graduate from high school, and that there was a lot of gun violence in the village.

“The situation is difficult in Kfar Kanna. We live under daily shootings by irresponsible people,” the unnamed friend said. “Razan was a friend and sister, and we all loved her. The police should punish anyone who took part in the shooting and endangered the lives of residents.”

The Abraham Initiatives, which monitors and campaigns against violence in the Arab community, said that the killing brings the number of Arabs killed in Israel in 2022 as a result of violence and crime to 17, of whom three were women and nine were under the age of 30.

Abbas is the second child this year to be killed by stray gunfire — in January, 4-year-old Ammar Muhammad Hujayrat was killed while playing in the northern village of Bir al-Maksur.

Arab communities have seen a surge in violence in recent years, driven mainly, but not exclusively, by organized crime.

Arab Israelis blame police, who they say have failed to crack down on powerful criminal organizations and largely ignore the violence, which includes family feuds, mafia turf wars and violence against women.

“Razan Abbas, an innocent victim killed in a tragic incident tonight,” Public Security Minister Omer Barlev, who oversees the police, said Wednesday. “A shocking death from a stray bullet of a girl whose whole life was ahead of her… We will carry on resolutely in our struggle to eradicate violence and crime from Arab streets.”