Israeli police warn of rise in organized crime
Israeli criminal organizations are stepping up their ruthlessness, adapting their operational methods to the modern era and penetrating government circles.
![PALESTINIANS-ISRAEL/ A police officer watches Israeli protesters take part in a rally against the release of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails outside Ofer prison near the West Bank city of Ramallah, October 29, 2013. Israel is to release 26 Palestinian prisoners in a second stage of a deal brokered by the United States in July that brought a resumption of peace talks. REUTERS/Darren Whiteside (ISRAEL - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS RELIGION) - RTX14SWY](/sites/default/files/styles/article_hero_medium/public/almpics/2013/11/RTX14SWY.jpg/RTX14SWY.jpg?h=2d235432&itok=aYijIjPY)
Everyone knows their names, as if they were famous movie actors or high-level politicians. Some of them are guarded and secured no less than the prime minister and defense minister. Wherever they go, they are surrounded by numerous bodyguards on all sides to protect them and forestall any physical closeness to them. They travel throughout the country in luxurious vehicles with dark-tinted windows. It is not a secret that they are viewed as brutal, merciless people.
Even though they distance themselves from the limelight, almost every Israeli knows the identity of the heads of organized crime in Israel. We are familiar with them all in the same way: When they march into the halls of the courts of law and sit in the dock, they are always surrounded by a battery of well-known, expensive lawyers.