JERUSALEM, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- Protesters across Israel staged demonstrations on Tuesday against what they described as the government's failure to curb a surge in homicides and organized crime in the country's Arab communities.
Relatives of slain Arab citizens and protest groups poured red dye into public fountains in several Israeli cities, a police spokesperson said in a statement. Demonstrators temporarily blocked traffic on the Ayalon highway near Tel Aviv, Israel's main north-south artery, as well as at the main entrance to Jerusalem, it said.
Four protesters in Haifa and several others in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv were detained over damaging fountains during the demonstrations, police said.
The protests were part of a nationwide day of action organized by families of victims, who said the government has intentionally neglected efforts to combat the surging crime in Arab society.
In a statement, protest organizers called on the public to wear black and halt work for two hours. Israel's Ynet news site reported that hundreds of medical staff at hospitals across the country joined the action. "The government is abandoning one-fifth of Israel's population," organizers said, urging both Jewish and Arab citizens to take part.
Also on Tuesday, Ayman Odeh, a lawmaker and leader of the Arab-Jewish Hadash Party, said organized crime in Arab society was driving away businesses, harming tourism, and undermining local economies. "Every murder is a human tragedy, but also part of a broader social and economic crisis," he said.
Arab citizens of Israel, who are descendants of Palestinians who remained in the country after the 1948 war, constitute about 20 percent of Israel's 10 million population. They have long complained about the discrimination in government funding for infrastructure, education and healthcare, as well as limited job opportunities.
According to the Abraham Initiatives, an Arab-Jewish advocacy group that tracks homicides, 38 Arab citizens of Israel have been killed since the start of 2026. In 2025, 252 murders were recorded in Arab communities, a record high. ■
