Three people shot and killed in suspected organized crime attacks within hours

Three people are shot and killed in suspected organized crime attacks within the space of a few hours, police and medics say.

Two men are found with gunshot wounds near Kibbutz Nahsholim in northern Israel.

Magen David Adom medics found the two men in their 20s in their vehicle with gunshot wounds and declared them dead at the scene.

Police set up roadblocks near the scene in a bid to find the shooters and were investigating the incident.

The shooting came soon after a man in his 50s was shot to death in the northern town of Isfiya.

Police say both incidents are criminal and likely linked to organized crime feuds among the Arab community.

Six people have been killed in similar incidents since the start of the week.

The Abraham Initiatives organization, which tracks Arab murder victims, says that there have now been 176 homicides in the Arab community since the start of the year. The homicide rate is about 12 percent higher than it was during the same period last year, the group says.

Arab politicians have often placed blame on police for failing to solve Arab sector murders, contributing to a lack of deterrence against violent crime.