Palestinian citizen of Israel becomes 80th fatal crime victim of 2023

A Palestinian citizen of Israel was shot dead and another was critically injured in two separate crimes in Israel Tuesday morning, according to Haaretz.

Musa Abu Musa, 60, was shot dead as he was leaving his house in the central Israeli city of Ramla, which has a significant Palestinian population.

Initial investigations show the shooting might be linked to criminal gang activity, Haaretz said, although The New Arab cannot independently verify this. 

Abu Musa had no criminal record and is the 80th Palestinian with Israeli citizenship to be the victim of crime within Israel's Arab community this year alone.

The second incident happened in the Palestinian town of Ar’ara in northern Israel, where a 47-year-old man was seriously wounded by gunfire, said Haaretz.

Both crimes come days after a young man was shot dead in Kafr Yasif. He was the son of an official from a northern Israeli Palestinian town.

Experts say that the increase in gun ownership and subsequent gun crime in Palestinian communities within Israel is due to the neglect of the Israeli government and a lack of police presence in affected neighbourhoods.

In March, it was announced that the special police unit assigned to help combat murder in 1948 Palestinian areas would be dismantled.

Palestinian activists have long protested against the Israeli police's indifference towards gun violence that has plagued the community for years, and have called for change.

Palestinians make up 20 percent of Israel's population but account for over 60 percent of murder victims nationwide.