(JNS) Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett on August 11 announced a national plan to fight crime in the country’s Arab sector. Referring to out-of-control violence in the streets of Arab-majority towns and villages, Bennett said, “my government is determined to take action and wage an unceasing, constant and persistent fight, with full force, against crime and violence in the Arab sector.” The sector, he said, comprises 20 percent of the overall population but accounts for 60 percent of the crime. “This situation cannot be and we will stop this neglect,” he added.

The plan, whose goals are to increase the personal security of Arab Israeli citizens and raise their confidence in Israel’s law enforcement agencies, calls for increasing police presence in Arab towns and on highways, strengthening intelligence and investigation capabilities and combating crime families and protection rackets. Eleven hundred personnel will be added to the Israel Police, in addition to two financial units, which will be tasked with protection rackets and economic crime.

Main Photo: Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett inspects illegal weapons seized during the Israel Police’s “Operation Sword Strike” in the country’s Arab sector, Aug. 11, 2021. GPO / Amos Ben-Gershom