Israeli organized crime

Hariri crime gang members arrested on busy Tel Aviv street in daylight operation

Footage circulated from the scene shows several suspects restrained on the ground before being taken into custody by masked police officers.

|ByHODAYA RAN
Law enforcement arrests a member of the Hariri crime organization on suspicion of extortion, threats, and the planting of explosive devices.
A stun grenade lays on the ground where Israeli border police officers stand guard near the Yitzhar setllment.

Wave of shootings, grenade attacks in Rishon Lezion sparks fears of mob feud harming civilians

The string of criminal incidents in recent months has left residents fearing that conflicts between criminal elements and attempts to intimidate businesspeople could ultimately harm innocent people.

|ByALON HACHMON
MDA at the site of the attack in Gush Etzion.

Inmate killed in northern Israel after leaving prison as part of rehabilitation program

As Heib approached the bus stop on his way to work, a vehicle pulled up beside him, and shots were fired from inside. He was critically wounded and pronounced dead at the scene.

|ByYOAV ETIEL, SHLOMI GABAI, ELI ASHKENAZI
An Israel Police officer is seen arresting a man on a highway in an illustrative

Israel's underworld at the ballot box: Who are crime figures backing?

Sources close to the Jarushi family indicated support for Ra'am and the Joint List, while associates of Eitan Hiya expressed a preference for Yair Golan.

|ByHODAYA RAN

It's time Israel recognizes Arab sector homicides as a national crisis - opinion

The murder rate in the Arab sector is not just a tragedy for Arab citizens. It is an indictment of the state.

JANUARY 9, 2026ByYAAKOV KATZ
Israeli security forces are seen at the scene where three men were shot dead by assassins in the city of Shefa-Amr, northern Israel, January 7, 2026.

Lahav 433, Tax Authority arrest seven for suspected extortion, money laundering, tax fraud

Seven members of the Bakri crime organization were arrested following an investigation carried out by multiple law enforcement agencies, including Lahav 433 and the Tax Authority.

JANUARY 6, 2026ByGOLDIE KATZ
Israeli police arrested senior Bakri crime group members and municipal officials in Nazareth overnight in the “Maze of Money” case targeting extortion and money laundering on December 9th, 2025.

Prosecutors file intent to indict Abu Latif crime boss, others in ‘Prince’ extortion affair

Police say the probe uncovered a network of extortion and financial offenses involving millions of shekels, carried out over a period of roughly five years.

JANUARY 5, 2026ByJERUSALEM POST STAFF
Nidal Abu Latif, who was arrested in a major police operation earlier today, is brought for a court hearing at the Nazareth Magistrate's Court on February 8, 2023.

Israel's Lahav 433 commander suspected of leaking information to suspects, police reveal

Assistant-Chief Meni Benjamin allegedly maintained personal contact with Salam without reporting the relationship to the proper authorities and is also suspected of sharing police information

DECEMBER 10, 2025ByFRAIDY MOSER, MAARIV
Assistant-Chief Meni Benjamin, head of Lahav 433 - The National Crime Unit, pictured on April 20, 2025.

Detention of crime lord Jarushi extended after surrendering to authorities

Jarushi is considered the lead suspect in the intense blackmailing of a money exchange business in southern Tel Aviv, police said at the hearing.

JULY 28, 2025BySARAH BEN-NUN
The cage bars of a prison cell (Illustrative).

Prison commissioner receives death threats after cracking down on criminal, terror orgs in prison

"From the point of view of the commissioner, all prisoners are equal. There is no discrimination," a senior officer told N12.

DECEMBER 2, 2024ByJERUSALEM POST STAFF
Israel Prison Service chief Kobi Yaakobi attends a National Security committee meeting at the Knesset, the Israeli parliament on November 20, 2024.

Israeli lawmakers call on A-G to step down in rare Knesset session

The meeting came amid unprecedented tension between the attorney-general and the government over a series of measures that the AG has deemed "not legally viable."

NOVEMBER 18, 2024ByELIAV BREUER
Attorney-General Gali Baharav Miara attends a Constitution, Law and Justice Committee in Jerusalem, on November 18, 2024

'Gov. abandons us to crime orgs.': Anger in Arab community following Ramle blast

The Abraham Initiatives organization, jointly run by Jews and Arabs, which aims to promote integration and equality, blamed the government for the violent incident. 

SEPTEMBER 13, 2024ByAVIHAI CHIIM
Arab Israelis stage a mock funeral in Tel Aviv on August 6 to demonstrate against what they say is the government’s failure to address soaring levels of organized crime.

Israeli police target crime families, drug and weapons networks with new directive

During a recent raid, detectives seized 1.5 kg of explosives from a crime family's compound in Ramle as part of the “Emergency Brakes” initiative under the new commissioner.

SEPTEMBER 10, 2024ByALON HACHMON
Newly appointed Police Commissioner Daniel Levi at the Israel Police Independence Day ceremony at the National Headquarters of the Israel Police in Jerusalem May 9, 2024.

What causes violence, murders among Israeli Arabs, and what can cure it?

By September 1, some 165 Israeli Arabs had been murdered since the start of the year. The violence is clearly out of control. But why? And what can and should be done?

SEPTEMBER 16, 2023BySHLOMO MAITAL
Arab Israelis stage a mock funeral in Tel Aviv on August 6 to demonstrate against what they say is the government’s failure to address soaring levels of organized crime.