‘Ben Gvir, you son of a bitch’: Police halt massive march against unchecked violence in Arab community

Municipal workers form human barrier between protesters and police during a march over police handling of violent crime in Sakhnin, northern Israel on January 22, 2026. (Charlie Summers/Times of Israel)
Municipal workers form human barrier between protesters and police during a march over police handling of violent crime in Sakhnin, northern Israel on January 22, 2026. (Charlie Summers/Times of Israel)

Police are preventing a massive march against violent crime in Arab society from continuing beyond Sakhnin, after tens of thousands set out from the northern city toward the Misgav regional council police station.

Most of the protesters head back the way they came, as many in the remaining crowd chant, “Ben Gvir, Ben Gvir, you son of a bitch,” with Sakhnin municipal workers forming a human barrier between them and riot police.

The demonstration caps off a daylong general strike in Arab cities and towns nationwide, over police’s failure to curb violent crime in the community.

Police have brought out a water cannon, a helicopter and around a dozen mounted officers to block off the road.

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