Reuven Shmerling
Reuven ShmerlingElkana Regional Council

MK Nissan Slomiansky (Jewish Home) reacted after fellow Elkana resident Reuven Shmerling, 70, was found stabbed to death in the Arab town of Kafr Qasim on Wednesday.

"I'm dumbfounded. It's hard to grasp the fact that my friend and neighbor isn't with us. Only a few days ago on Yom Kippur I heard him pray, and now he's gone," said Slomiansky.

Shmerling left behind a wife and four children. Police and the Shin Bet are investigating whether he was killed by Arab workers he employed.

“We have confirmed that the Israeli man was murdered and police units are searching for suspects who could have been in the area at the time of the incident. The body bore signs of stab wounds,” a police spokesperson said.

MK Oren Hazan (Likud) blasted the police for stating that the circumstances of the incident were unclear. "What is unclear?" tweeted Hazan. "It's the same Arabs, the hatred."