Israel Police arrest gang moments before planned murder in Nazareth hospital

The North District of Israel Police arrested a gang of three armed criminals on the grounds of the Italian Hospital in Nazareth, a police spokesperson said.

According to a police spokesman, the squad planned to commit murder inside the hospital premises.

Police received a report of a suspicious vehicle parked in the parking lot of the Italian Hospital in Nazareth with several people inside. 

The police officers who arrived at the scene noticed three masked men preparing to get out of their vehicle and stopped them with their weapons drawn.

The three planned to carry out a murder in the hospital, an event that could have turned into a bloodbath in which innocent citizens would have been harmed, according to police. Two loaded pistols were seized by police.

The ongoing police investigation suggests that the vehicle used by the gang was stolen with plates from another vehicle. Inside was found a screwdriver for changing the plates quickly and a fuel tank suspected to be for igniting the vehicle after fleeing the murder.

Increased violence in the North

Over the weekend, 22 suspects were arrested for their involvement in the ongoing and increasing violence in the North.

North District Commander - Superintendent Shuki Tachaocha: "We see once again that the war of criminal organizations knows no bounds, if it were not for the brave activity of the police officers, we could now find ourselves at a completely different end to the event, which includes loss of life, and even harm to uninvolved citizens inside the hospital. We operate under intelligence and use all our forces in the field in order to prevent further killing and violence and crush criminal organizations."