Three killed in Northern Israel amid soaring homicide rate

Tel Aviv [Israel], June 9 (ANI/TPS): Three people were killed in northern Israel on Sunday evening and overnight in separate incidents, adding to a surge in homicides that brought the weekly death toll to 14.

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Yair Golan, leader of the opposition Democrats party, blamed National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, saying he has "utterly failed in his duty" to oversee law enforcement.

In the Arab town of Umm al-Fahm, a 60-year-old woman was fatally stabbed. Her 28-year-old son was arrested after allegedly also stabbing his pregnant wife, who was hospitalized in moderate condition. Police said the suspect, found covered in blood, threatened officers with a sharp object before being subdued.

In Daburiyya, a 27-year-old man was shot dead and another man, 22, was lightly injured. Police said the shooting appeared to be criminal in nature.

Earlier that evening, a 21-year-old from Kfar Hittim was shot in Tiberias and later died at the hospital. The motive remains unknown and the shooter fled the scene.

Much of the deadly violence has affected Arab Israeli towns and villages. The Abraham Initiatives, a non-profit organization that promotes Arab integration into Israeli society, reported 107 violent deaths in the Arab community this year -- 91 by gunfire -- up from 90 at this time last year.

The spike is a continuation of the Arab sector's 230 murders in 2024. In 2023, a record number of 244 Israeli-Arabs were murdered, more than double the 120 homicides in 2022.

The surge in violence is attributed to organized crime groups fighting turf battles and trying to eliminate rivals. Arab criminal organizations have been involved in extortion, money laundering, and trafficking in weapons, drugs and women.

Critics argue the crime wave has worsened since Ben-Gvir, a far-right politician, became National Security Minister in 2022. (ANI/TPS)

(The story has come from a syndicated feed and has not been edited by the Tribune Staff.)