Groom arrested at own wedding for celebratory gunfire

Police called in after shots heard at event in northern Arab town of Umm Al-Fahm; man released after questioning

Police said Sunday that they arrested a groom at his wedding last week over suspicions a gun was fired during the celebrations.

Police in the northern Arab town of Umm Al-Fahm opened an investigation after receiving reports that gunfire was heard coming from the wedding.

Officers who arrived at the celebrations found bullet casings on the floor and detained the groom, 30, on suspicion of conspiracy to commit an offense, police said.

The groom was questioned and then granted conditional release.

The police statement did not say how long the man was kept at the police station for questioning.

The police statement said it takes a very serious view of “celebratory fire” at weddings as it is a life-threatening danger. It said it is working to explain the dangers to the public and “eradicate this unacceptable phenomenon.”

In June, a groom was arrested in front of his wife as they arrived at the airport to set off for their honeymoon on suspicion that he supplied an unlicensed gun that was used to fire shots in the air at his wedding.

Some 400,000 illegal weapons are circulating in Israel, according to a 2020 Knesset report, the vast majority of them in Arab communities, which have seen a surge in violence in recent years, driven mainly by organized crime.