Police Arrest 27 Illegal Arab Workers

Police on Tuesday arrested 27 illegal Arab workers who were being driven into the Israeli Arab town of Umm el-Faham. Out of all the detainees, only one had a valid work permit. Police took all the suspects into custody, among them two minors.

The illegal workers were being driven by a resident of Umm el-Faham. Police said that they used various intelligence and technological measures to detect the presence of the illegal workers. Many of those detained were arrested in the past for similar offenses.

The detainees will be sent back to Palestinian Authority-controlled areas, and will be banned from entering Israel or receiving a work permit for at least six months. The driver and any employers who may have hired the illegals are subject to stiff penalties, including fines of tens of thousands of shekels. Police said they are questioning the illegals to determine where they worked. Officials said that the problem of illegal Arab workers was a major security breach, and that they intended to put a stop to it by all means at their disposal.