18-year-old found shot dead in pit named as Jerusalemite Eviatar Azarzar

Murder victim reportedly known to police for previous involvement in violence; gag order imposed on investigation

Eviatar Azarzar (Courtesy)
Eviatar Azarzar (Courtesy)

An 18-year-old found dead Friday near a cemetery in the central city of Ramat Hasharon was named on Saturday night as Eviatar Azarzar.

Azarzar, a Jerusalemite who lived in Bnei Brak, is believed to have been murdered. A gag order was placed on most details of the case, which is believed to be criminal rather than terror related.

His body was discovered in a pit near with gunshot wounds to the upper torso.

Azarzar was previously known to police due to his involvement in a number of violent incidents, according to Hebrew news reports, and his body was believed to have been there for a few days.

A police car and other vehicles are seen at the site where a body with gunshot wounds was found in the central city of Ramat Hasharon, December 27, 2019. (Screen capture: Twitter)

His family issued a plea last Wednesday for help locating him; he had reportedly not been seen for some three weeks.

Also Friday, a man was shot to death outside the northern town of Deir al-Asad in a suspected murder.

Emergency personnel tried to treat the victim, named Saturday as 60-year-old Jamal Ali Hasarma, but he was pronounced dead at the scene.

Recent months have seen a wave of killings and crime in the Arab Israeli community. Arab leaders say police largely ignore the violence in their communities, everything from family feuds and mafia turf wars to domestic violence and so-called honor killings.

A number of demonstrations and large rallies have been held to protest what Arab Israelis say is a failure to adequately deal with the wave of criminal violence within the community.

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