General and Comprehensive Strike in the Arab Community in Protest Against the Spread of Crime and Violence

SadaNews - A general and comprehensive strike is taking place today, Thursday, in the Arab community across the country, called by the Higher Follow-Up Committee for Arab Citizens, in protest against the rise of organized crime and the spread of violence, amid ongoing accusations against the Israeli occupation police for failing to provide security and safety for the citizens.

The city of Sakhnin had initiated the strike, which then expanded to include wide towns and areas within the Arab community, where shops were closed and public facilities ceased operations, in an unprecedented protest step reflecting the extent of public anger regarding the ongoing murders.

A national demonstration is scheduled to take place this afternoon at 3 PM, starting from Sakhnin towards a police station in 'Misgav', condemning extortion phenomena 'khawa' and gunfire, and demanding the establishment of a comprehensive and serious governmental plan to combat violence and organized crime in the Arab community.

The Follow-Up Committee confirmed this morning that "the success of the general strike is a personal, familial, national, social, and political duty. Organized crime under the auspices of the Israeli establishment is not fate. Fear is not an option".

It clarified, "We want to live... and we want to move forward with our children, our land, our homes, our country, and our people".

Adalah Appeals to the Supreme Court Against Restrictions on Sakhnin’s Protest March

The Adalah legal center will be pleading today, Thursday at 10:00 AM, before the Supreme Court, in a urgent petition submitted by lawyer Hadeel Abu Saleh on behalf of the mayor of Sakhnin, Mazen Ghnaim, against an Israeli police decision to impose restrictions preventing the protest march scheduled for today at 3:00 PM in Sakhnin from reaching the intersection leading to the "Misgav" police station.

The court decided to hold an urgent session to consider the petition and required the police to provide their response by 8:30 AM today. The Sakhnin municipality had submitted a request for a permit for the march on January 19, 2026, which was approved, but the police retracted their approval the following day, informing the mayor that the march would not be allowed to reach the intersection leading to the police station, and that it would only be permitted if it ended near the first gas station at the city exit, about 1.5 kilometers from the police station, under the pretext of "limited workforce" and anticipating large numbers of participants in the demonstration.

Adalah affirmed in its petition that the police's decision is unreasonable and seriously infringes upon the freedom of expression and the right to protest, as they are fundamental constitutional rights. It emphasized that the choice of protest location is a crucial part of the message being conveyed by the demonstration, not a marginal organizational detail, as the march aims to reach the vicinity of the police station specifically to express protest against its failure to address crime and violence in the Arab community.

Adalah explained that the police should not restrict protests except according to strict criteria and in exceptional cases, and that the general rule obliges them to allocate the necessary forces and resources to secure demonstrations and ensure the safety of participants, rather than relocating it, especially when the location plays a fundamental role in the message that the protesters seek to deliver.

This petition comes within the context of a popular movement that began in Sakhnin, which started by declaring an open popular strike on January 19, 2026, followed by calls for a protest march against the police's failure to carry out their duties and the spread of crime, before extending this movement to other Arab towns.

Source: Arabs 48