4 women – mother, 2 daughters and a sister-in-law – killed by Iranian missile near Haifa
10 injured in salvo from Islamic Republic on northern Arab city of Tamra, where residents have warned about lack of bomb shelters
Iran on Saturday night launched a barrage of dozens of ballistic missiles at Israel, with one missile impacting in the Arab city of Tamra, east of Haifa, killing four people.
The barrage was Iran’s first since the early morning hours.
The salvo sent most of the country into shelters, with Home Front Command pushing phone alerts shortly after 11 p.m., but sirens were then only activated in the north and the Haifa area, as air defenses were activated to intercept the incoming attack.
One missile struck a two-story home in Tamra, killing four women and injuring some 10 people.
The women were named as Manar Khatib and her two daughters, Hala, 20, and Shada, 13, as well as another relative, also named Manar Khatib. The latter Manar Khatib was married to the brother of the father of the family.
נשבר הלב. מרוסק.
ומי אתם, אנשים מתועבים, ששמחים במותן, שרוקדים על דמן?
תסתכלו עליהן, במה אתם טובים מהן, אנשים חשוכים? במה?תושבי טמרה, אחים שלנו היקרים,
מחבקת אתכם ושולחת ניחומים בשם כל מי ששפוי במדינה הזאת.
כולי תקווה שזה הרוב.
איתכם, אחים, בלילה הנורא הזה.
???? pic.twitter.com/B6PCEL7G1O— (AKA שני הדר) אלה צביאלי???? (@tsviella) June 15, 2025
Residents of the Arab Israeli city have long warned that there is a dearth of bomb shelters in the area, and that almost no homes have a safe room attached. By law, buildings constructed in Israel since the 1990s are required to include a bomb safe room; however, there is limited enforcement by local and national authorities.
At around 11:45 p.m., the Home Front Command gave the all-clear for people to leave shelters, though more barrages were expected overnight.
A video circulating on social media on Saturday night showed a Jewish family cheering as Iranian ballistic missiles fell in Tamra, sparking outrage from many officials.
“On the village, on the village!” a man could be heard shouting in the clip. He and others then broke out into singing the anti-Arab phrase “May your village burn,” clapping their hands as missiles rained down on the neighboring city.
A number of politicians condemned the video and other similar social media posts.
Labor MK Naama Lazimi wrote on X that there is “nothing human, Jewish or Israeli” about lauding a strike on an Arab town — “shameful and disgusting.”
Deputy Tel Aviv Mayor Asaf Zamir said such celebrations “make me nauseated and I am ashamed of you.”
Hadash-Ta’al party chief Ayman Odeh wrote that such expressions were “the voices of Netanyahu, Ben Gvir and Smotrich, the warmongers and everyone who supports them.” He added that “these racists should be investigated and arrested.”
Other videos on social media have shown Arab Israelis cheering at the sight of missiles heading toward Jewish population centers.
Iran had launched three major barrages of ballistic missiles at Israel Friday night and early Saturday morning. Some 80 people were reported hurt in the strikes, including three people who were critically injured and later succumbed to their wounds in the cities of Ramat Gan and Rishon Lezion. According to Magen David Adom, several more people were seriously hurt. The rest were lightly to moderately injured or suffered acute anxiety.
The three fatalities in Ramat Gan and Rishon Lezion were named Saturday as Etti Cohen Engel, Yisrael Aloni and Yevgenia Blinder.
תמונות קשות מאוד מגיעות מטמרה שבגליל. בית שקרס, פצועים רבים ואישה אחת שנהרגה. כאב כבד יורד על העיר היפה הזו, אני שולח חיבוק גדול לכל תושבות ותושבי טמרה בשעה הקשה הזו.
האסון הזה הוא תזכורת כואבת לכך שהמלחמה גולשת ומסכנת את החיים של כולנו, בכל מקום.
זה הזמן להרים את הראש, לשאול… pic.twitter.com/bZQHxnhzBH
— Yanal Jabarin ينال جبارين | ינאל ג׳בארין (@JbareenYanal) June 14, 2025
Iranian media claimed hundreds of missiles were fired in the first barrage late Friday, while the Israel Defense Forces estimated that the actual number in all the attacks stood at some 200.
The three waves of attacks Friday overnight each consisted of dozens of missiles, according to the IDF, which declined to provide a specific number.
The IDF has called on the public not to publish the locations or footage of missile impacts. “The enemy monitors the footage to improve its attack capabilities,” the military said.
The enmity between Israel and Iran escalated into an unprecedented open conflict in the early hours of Friday morning as Israel launched a major offensive against Iran and its nuclear program, hitting nuclear sites, missile bases and top military officials.
Israel said it had no choice but to attack Iran, adding that it had gathered intelligence that Tehran was approaching “the point of no return” in its pursuit of a nuclear weapon.
The Israeli operation was expected to last several days at least, according to military officials, who added that the IDF was preparing for heavy fire from Iran, but asserted that “at the end of the operation, there will be no nuclear threat” from the Islamic Republic.
The Times of Israel Community.