Rahat, the largest Bedouin town in Israel. (Yossi Zamir/Flash90) (Yossi Zamir/Flash90)
Bedouin town in the Negev

An Israeli grandmother is in moderate condition after being stabbed by an Arab in a large Bedouin town in southern Israel.

Shlomit Galon, an Israeli grandmother in her mid-60s, was stabbed in the neck and sustained moderate injuries Saturday afternoon while shopping in the Bedouin town of Rahat in the Negev.

Galon, who lives in the nearby Kibbutz Mishmar HaNegev, was together with family members in the open market area when an Arab man, estimated at about 20 years of age, stabbed her and fled by foot, witnesses said.

Police, who believe the attack was nationalistically motivated, are searching for the terrorist. Reports conflict as to whether he is a resident of Rahat. the largest Bedouin town in Israel, or a Palestinian who entered Israel illegally.

The victim was treated by Magen David Adom paramedics before being evacuated to Soroka Medical Center in Be’er Sheva.

The Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) has also been concerned recently about the spreading of Islamic State (ISIS) ideology among the Bedouin population in the Negev. Four Bedouin teachers working in the Israeli school system in southern Israel, for example, were arrested by police and security forces in July for distributing ISIS propaganda among their students and other educators in the Negev town of Hura.

By: United with Israel Staff