Jerusalem, 16 February, 2026 (TPS-IL) — Two young men were shot dead in broad daylight in the northern Israeli city of Umm al-Fahm on Monday, as this year’s death toll from a wave of Israeli-Arab violence climbed to 50.
Both men, believed to be in their mid-twenties, were found in a car, which witnesses said had caught fire following the attack.
Emergency responders from Magen David Adom (MDA) arrived at the scene to find the men unconscious with gunshot wounds. One of the victims was trapped in an overturned vehicle. “When we arrived at the scene, we saw two unconscious wounded men with no pulse and no breathing, with penetrating injuries to their bodies,” said MDA paramedic Suheib Mahajna. “We performed medical examinations, but unfortunately, we had no choice but to declare them dead at the scene.”
Police have opened an investigation into the killings and have established checkpoints in the area as searches continue for suspects. Authorities said that a preliminary assessment pointed to a criminal dispute as the motive, but the identities of the victims have not yet been released.
Separate incidents on Saturday saw a 20-year-old man killed in a shooting on Highway 40 in the Negev region, and an 18-year-old man murdered in a Nazareth shooting.
On Thursday, five people were killed in less than 24 hours in Rahat, Segev Shalom, Birka, Lod, and Fordyce. “We are in a state of national emergency,” said Police Commissioner Danny Levy during a briefing with senior commanders that day.
“The silence of the government, the police commissioner, and senior police officers cannot hide the truth – there is a complete loss of governance on the streets of Israel,” said the Abraham Initiatives, a non-profit organization that promotes Arab integration into Israeli society. “The rampant crime is not a decree of fate, but a decision not to solve it.”
On Tuesday, Israeli-Arabs held nationwide protests demanding a stronger government response.
The two shootings come amid a continuing pattern of violence in the Arab sector, which saw a record number of 252 Israeli-Arabs murdered in 2025 — more than double the 120 homicides in 2022.
The surge is attributed to organized crime groups fighting turf battles and attempting to eliminate rivals. Arab criminal organizations have been involved in extortion, money laundering, and trafficking in weapons, drugs, and women.
Critics argue the crime wave has worsened since Itamar Ben-Gvir, a far-right politician, became National Security Minister in 2022.
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