Man killed by car bomb in Taybeh, another shot dead in Lod; police say incidents not terror

A man in his 40s was killed in a car bombing this morning in Taybeh, paramedics and police say. The explosion moderately injured two others, who have since been taken to Meir Hospital in Kfar Saba.

After that, a man in his 20s was shot dead in Lod. Paramedics found him in critical condition and transported him to the hospital, but medical staff pronounced him dead upon arrival, according to a police statement.

Police have opened investigations into the incidents and assume both are criminal rather than terror-related. No suspects have yet been arrested.

Lod has been the site of two shootings in the past 24 hours. Yesterday, resident Ayoub al-Touri was killed in a shooting that police say was related to a dispute between two families in the city.

A violent crime wave has engulfed the Arab community in recent years. Authorities have blamed burgeoning organized crime and the proliferation of weaponry, while some have pointed to a failure by communities to cooperate with law enforcement to root out criminals.

Many community leaders blame the police, who they say have failed to crack down on powerful criminal organizations and largely ignore the violence. They also point to decades of neglect and discrimination by government offices as the root cause of the problem.