As Israel’s assault on the Gaza Strip approaches the one-year mark and the military begins a simultaneous ground invasion in southern Lebanon, another war is intensifying in parallel — one being waged by criminal gangs in Palestinian communities inside Israel. Since the beginning of 2024, more than 180 Palestinians citizens of Israel have been murdered in attacks linked to organized crime, a figure that could be on track to match last year’s record of 244. And it’s not just the numbers that are shocking; it’s also the nature of the attacks.
Whereas in the past, criminal killings were overwhelmingly shootings, in recent months there has been a sharp uptick in the use of explosive devices. The most notable example was a car bombing in the city of Ramle on Sept. 12, which killed four people — including two children — and wounded nine others, including a two-month-old baby. Last week, a similar attack in the city of Kiryat Malachi seriously wounded a Palestinian man from the Bedouin town of Hura. ….more
