The Shin Ben internal security agency will assist the police in tackling crime in the Arab sector, the Prime Minister's office announced Wednesday following a meeting by a ministerial panel established to address the spiraling crime wave.
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Although normally in charge of matters of national security, the Shin Bet will be brought in "against criminal organizations in all matters related to municipal elections."
Video: The scene of Tuesday's shocking quadruple murder in Abu Snan / Credit: Magen David Adom emergency medical services
According to Kan News, the agency has already identified 15-20 Arab localities in which candidates, voters, or elected officials are being threatened by criminal elements.
The panel – chaired by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu – convened following the murder of two political figures from the Arab community in just two days.
Netanyahu said the shooting of the figures "crossed a line."
"We will use all means, including the Shin Bet and the police, to defeat this criminal phenomenon. We have eliminated organized crime in the Jewish sector in Israel and we will eliminate organized crime in the Arab sector as well," he said. "Every citizen of Israel must feel secure and not under the shadow of the threat of internal terrorism."
Similarly, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has called for the Shin Bet to investigate all violent crimes in the Arab sector and demanded the use of administrative detention that would enable holding suspects for extended periods of time without charge.
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