Rabia Abu Heikel, identified with the Hariri crime organization, was killed when his car exploded in Kiryat Haim, Haifa. Eyewitnesses reported multiple secondary blazes after the initial blast. Police are investigating a suspected criminal motive.
Tuesday's car bomb in Kiryat Haim that killed Rabia Abu Heikel, identified with the Hariri crime organization, is the third apparent criminal hit in the Haifa Bay area in three days, following Sunday's Jaffa car bomb that killed Iyad Gharb. As The Zioneer first reported at 16:01, the explosion occurred on Achi Eilat Street at around 15:58, with emergency crews arriving to find the vehicle in flames. By 16:29, witnesses were quoted saying the victim 'blew up while driving'; one witness told media: 'I felt like a missile fell next to me — there was a crazy explosion.' Firefighters reported secondary explosions, and the victim was pronounced dead at the scene.
The thread unfolded rapidly: the first report at 16:01 described a vehicle explosion with one person critically wounded and another seriously injured. Within minutes, that was revised to a single fatality, and by 16:01 (in successive versions) the cause shifted from an accident to an explosive device attached to the car, and the victim was identified as a crime figure. The identification as Rabia Abu Heikel was published at 16:01, initially citing Israeli media reports; later versions specified his alleged affiliation with the Hariri crime organization. The current version of the story identifies him as a senior figure in that syndicate.
Police have not confirmed a connection between Sunday's Jaffa car bomb — which killed Iyad Gharb and lightly wounded his 6-year-old son — and Tuesday's attack, though both involve car bombs targeting criminal figures. As The Zioneer reported on Sunday, the Jaffa bombing is being investigated for a possible link to a revenge killing the previous Thursday.
The investigation into Tuesday's blast remains ongoing, with no arrests reported. The precise motive and any link to the Jaffa incident remain unconfirmed.
10 developments
- StrongKiryat Haim vehicle explosion was car bomb, police say — criminal motive suspected
- StrongAssassination suspected in Haifa; victim linked to major northern crime family
- DevelopingExplosion in Haifa Bay area assessed as criminal, not hostile
- StrongHaifa overnight: Driver killed, one critically wounded in single-vehicle crash
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