Public Security Minister Omer Barlev commented on the wave of indictments recently filed against the Hariri protection ring, praising the officers involved in the investigation and adding a warning to organized crime throughout Israel.
"We can now tell the public that, in addition to the eight indictments filed against members of the Hariri ring last week, an indictment has been filed against Malek Hariri, leader of one of the largest organized crime families in Israel, a man whose name was feared by many throughout Israel's Arab population," Barlev announced.
During an intensive investigation, investigators from the Israel Police's central investigations base Lahav 433 tracked multiple cases of extortion carried out by senior members of the Hariri family in the Tayibe area, amounting to hundreds of thousands of shekels.
"A few months ago, I set a goal for the Israel Police to bring down criminal organizations in the Arab population as early as 2022. I believed in my officers' abilities, and the results followed soon after," Barlev added.
The minister issued a warning to other organized crime rings in Israel, saying that "The ground is shaking beneath the feet of crime families who are terrorizing the Arab sector, and we will keep the pressure on them. Congratulations to the Israel Police and its investigators on all their hard work.".