‘No One to Back Us’: Arab Bus Drivers in Israel Speak Out as Racist Attacks Surge

Drivers report a 30% rise in violence since the Gaza war began, alleging police inaction and a systemic failure to protect Palestinian and Arab-Israeli workers

JERUSALEM – What began as an ordinary shift for Fakhri Khatib, a Palestinian bus driver from East Jerusalem, spiraled into a national flashpoint. Surrounded by an ultra-Orthodox Jewish crowd hurling insults and spitting at him, Khatib called the police for help. When none arrived, he drove off in fear—unaware that a 14-year-old was clinging to his bumper. The teenager was killed, and Khatib now faces charges of negligent homicide.

His case, while extreme, is emblematic of a broader crisis. Across Israel, Arab bus drivers say they are enduring a wave of racist attacks that has intensified since the start of the Gaza war in October 2023. Despite a ceasefire, the violence persists—and drivers, unions, and advocates accuse the state of turning a blind eye.

A 30% Spike in Violence
According to Koach LaOvdim (Power to the Workers), a union representing some 5,000 of Israel’s 20,000 bus drivers, physical assaults against drivers rose by 30 percent last year. In Jerusalem alone, the union recorded 100 cases severe enough to require medical evacuation. Verbal incidents, they say, are too numerous to count.

The majority of affected drivers are Palestinians from annexed East Jerusalem or Arab citizens of Israel—a community that makes up about one-fifth of the country’s population and frequently staffs public transit in mixed cities like Jerusalem and Haifa.

“We have no one to back us, only God,” one driver told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity. He, like others, pointed a finger at far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, accusing his rhetoric of fueling the hostility.

Football Matches as Flashpoints
Drivers say attacks often spike around football matches, particularly those of Beitar Jerusalem, a club whose fan base has a long-standing reputation for anti-Arab sentiment. In response, the grassroots Israeli-Palestinian group Standing Together has begun organizing “protective presence” teams on buses—a tactic usually deployed in the West Bank to deter settler violence.

“We can see that it escalates sometimes toward breaking windows or hurting the bus drivers,” activist Elyashiv Newman told AFP, standing outside Jerusalem’s Teddy Stadium after a match.

Police Response Under Fire
Union leader Mohamed Hresh, a 39-year-old Arab-Israeli driver, said the violence is compounded by systemic inaction. “What hurts us is not only the racism, but the police handling of this matter,” he said, noting that most cases are dropped despite video evidence.

Israeli police did not respond to requests for comment.

In early February, Transport Minister Miri Regev launched a pilot security unit deploying rapid-response motorcycle teams in several cities, acknowledging that violence on public transport was “crossing a red line.”

Solidarity Across Divides
For drivers like Hresh and his Jewish colleague Micha Vaknin, who also leads within the union, the path forward lies in unity. “We will have to stay together,” Vaknin said, “not be torn apart.”

As the drivers await change, their message remains stark: in a country where they move the public, they say the public—and the state—has left them dangerously exposed.