Israel Police Chief Dudi Cohen on Tuesday presented a picture of the department’s operational successes and failures in 2008, expressing alarm over the sharp increase in violence among the nation’s young.
The press was barred from the event which took place in Jerusalem. It was the first time the department conducted the year-end report in a closed door session.
Burglaries into homes 2008 were down 13% and also down 16% in businesses, and down 13% regarding thefts from cars. Car thefts are down 24% and robberies are down 9%. Cohen reports the Subaru Luna is the most popular vehicle of car thieves, stating 1,554 were stolen in 2008.
Cohen proudly announced most leading crime family leaders are behind bars, some serving prison sentences and some being held without bail pending their trials.
On the less pleasant side, there was an increase in road deaths, 450 as compared to 433 in 2007. Violence among the young, including the use of knives is up 14% and drug use among the young is up a startling 20%. There was a startling increase of 168.5% in the number of police cases opened against students for violence and drug-related crimes. There was also an increase in homicides with 122 in 2008 compared to 118 in 2007.
Perhaps the most troublesome of all the statistics is the decrease in the number of citizen calls and complaints to the 100 dispatcher, Israel’s “911”, registering 6% less calls than in 2007, signaling despair among citizens, possibly no longer viewing police as a legitimate agency capable of assisting in the time of need.
(Yechiel Spira – YWN Israel)
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One Response
“signaling despair among citizens, possibly no longer viewing police as a legitimate agency capable of assisting in the time of need.”
I would end the sentence after agency and replace “signaling despair” with proving.