New Appointment by Minister Ben Gvir to Combat Crime in the Bedouin Sector
A shift in strategy in the south: moving from targeted raids to continuous civil law enforcement under police protection. The new appointment by the Minister of National Security aims to enable the Israel Electric Corporation, the Tax Authority, and the National Insurance Institute to operate safely in Bedouin settlements.
Against the backdrop of the "Way of the Cities" operation that began this Wednesday in Rahat, it has been learned by "HaYom" that the police and the Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir have finalized the appointment of the former head of the Israel Prison Service (IPS) staff, Ilan Malka, to a new position. In this role, he will coordinate police escorts for all enforcement agencies operating in the Bedouin sector. Malka is expected to begin his duties as early as next week.
The appointment is intended to address one of the central problems that has faced state authorities for years: the difficulty for civil enforcement agencies to operate continuously in Bedouin settlements due to concerns for employee safety, local resistance, and the lack of a permanent operational envelope.
As part of his role, Malka will coordinate police work with government bodies, including the Israel Electric Corporation, water corporations, the Tax Authority, the National Insurance Institute, the Enforcement and Collection Authority, the Israel Land Authority, and other enforcement bodies, with the goal of enabling them to carry out enforcement actions on an ongoing basis under police security.
Damage to infrastructure and income
According to sources familiar with the details of the move, this represents a conceptual change led by the police, in which the fight against crime in the Bedouin sector focuses not only on arrests and the confiscation of weaponry, but also on damaging the sources of income and the economic infrastructure upon which criminal activity relies.
According to data previously published in "HaYom", the state loses over a billion shekels every year as a result of pirate connections to the electricity grid, water thefts, tax evasion reaching millions of shekels, uncollected debts, and damage to public infrastructure. In the electricity sector alone, the damage is estimated at a billion shekels per year, to which are added losses of millions more in the water sector and debts to various state bodies.
Alongside this, State Comptroller reports have pointed to particularly low collection rates of municipal property tax (Arnona) in some Bedouin authorities. For example, in the Neve Midbar Regional Council, a minimal rate of Arnona is collected, while in the Al-Kasum Regional Council the collection rate stands at zero percent, reflecting the ongoing challenge for the state and local authorities in enforcing collection and ensuring income.
The move integrates into the "Way of the Cities" operation, which opened in Rahat with the participation of hundreds of police officers and dozens of enforcement agencies and government ministries. As part of the operation, police forces are acting alongside the Tax Authority, the National Insurance Institute, the Ministry of Labor, the Israel Electric Corporation, the Ministry of Health, the Enforcement and Collection Authority, and the Israel Land Authority against crime targets selected in advance through intelligence work.
Making it difficult for criminal elements
Police officials estimate that concentrating all enforcement bodies under one coordinator, who will manage their activity and ensure permanent police escort, will allow a transition from point operations to continuous enforcement throughout the year, with the goal of reducing economic damage to the state and strengthening governance.
The appointment comes against the backdrop of the "Way of the Cities" operation, which set out in Rahat and its surroundings with the participation of hundreds of police officers, Border Police fighters, and the National Guard. As part of the preliminary activity and the overt phase of the operation, dozens of vehicles and trucks belonging to debtors, worth an estimated millions of shekels, have been seized so far, and two pistols and ammunition were also confiscated during the preparation.
In parallel, the forces are carrying out economic, criminal, and administrative enforcement against crime targets, with the goal of cutting off the income sources of criminal elements, increasing the collection of debts to the state, and strengthening governance in the sector.
