Police chief: Attack on elected officials 'crosses red line'

Mayor of Arab town in north shot and seriously hurt, alongside his deputy

Suheil Milhim, council head of Jadeidi-Makr, in serious condition, deputy moderately injured; local resident arrested as suspect; Herzog: ‘Serious and shocking’ event

A local council head and his deputy were shot and wounded in the northern Arab town of Jadeidi-Makr on Sunday night, in an apparent assassination attempt, police said.

The council head, Suheil Milhim, was in serious condition, while the deputy mayor, named as Abed Abed, was moderately injured, medics said.

Police said forces launched a manhunt for the perpetrators of the suspected attempted hit. Later Monday, police said a suspect was arrested.  The suspect, a resident of the town in his 20s, was taken in for questioning. He was to be brought for a remand hearing after investigators interrogated him.

The Galilee Medical Center, where the two wounded politicians were taken, said Milhim is still in serious condition after undergoing several surgeries, while Abed is in moderate condition.

Milhim was also the target of multiple attempted attacks in 2019, with shots fired at his home several times that year. His car was set on fire, and a security guard was seriously injured in one of the attacks on his home.

Reacting to the attempted killing of the local politicians, President Isaac Herzog called it a “serious and shocking event,” part of a phenomenon that must be fought.

“I was shocked to hear about the attempted murder last night of the head of the local council of Jadeidi-Makr, Suheil Milhim, and his deputy,” Herzog said.

“This is a serious and shocking event, which joins the unbearable wave of violence that is harming Arab society and claiming many victims, almost every day,” Herzog added, calling it “a strategic threat to the State of Israel.”

The president said he spoke with Milhim several months ago about the threats he had been facing, and issued “a firm call to fight this terrible phenomenon with all the tools at our disposal.”

Israel Police commissioner Danny Levy also issued a strong condemnation of the attack, which he said “crosses a red line.”

“This is a direct attack on elected officials, symbols of government, and the ability of state authorities to act safely for the benefit of citizens,” he said.

“Our message to all lawbreakers is clear and unequivocal: We will act with a heavy hand and determination against anyone who chooses to harm citizens and elected officials,” Levy emphasized.

In a statement on Monday condemning the shooting, the newly elected leader of the Arab-majority Hadash party leader Yousef Jabareen said the attack reflects the government’s broader failure to tackle violent crime in Arab communities.

“More than 100 murders in Arab society since the start of the year are not inevitable,” he said, but are instead “the direct result of a policy of neglect, government inaction and the lack of genuine political will to confront criminal organizations and illegal weapons.”

“This government itself has become an existential threat to Arab society,” Jabareen added. “Instead of fighting crime, it allows it to expand, instead of protecting citizens, it abandons them, and instead of taking responsibility, it continues with incitement, racism and indifference to the blood being spilled in the streets.”

Sunday night’s shooting comes as Israel’s Arab community has been been wracked with violence and killings in recent years, with community members blaming police for frequently failing to act.

According to the Abraham Initiatives crime watchdog, 105 Arab Israelis have been killed since the beginning of the year.

The soaring death toll follows the deadliest year on record for Arab Israelis, in which 252 were killed in criminal incidents. If homicides continue at their current pace, 2026 stands to be much deadlier for Israel’s Arab minority than the preceding year.

Local politicians and religious figures have denounced the crime sweeping their communities, but most place blame on law enforcement, accusing police of neglecting to solve homicides when the victims are Arab.

The spiraling homicide rate, which is largely fueled by mafia-style organized crime, has recently been the focus of escalating protests. A major target of popular ire has been National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, with Arab Israelis insisting the far-right politician’s oversight of police has led to worsening neglect of Arab towns by law enforcement.