Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday declared a state of emergency in the central city of Lod as police claimed Arab residents were waging "wide-scale riots".
Netanyahu and Minister of Public Security Amir Ohana visited the city, which is in the suburbs of economic hub Tel Aviv near the Ben Gurion airport, to call for calm.
In a statement Netanyahu said he authorized law enforcement officers to respond to the riots with force. "We must return our authority to the city with an iron fist," he said as he called on residents to remain in their homes and allow security forces to operate.
"If necessary we will enforce a lockdown on the city and on other locations," Netanyahu said.
Two people were injured during the rioting, one of them was hospitalized in serious condition after suffering a head wound caused by a barrage of stones hurled at him by the mob. cars were set on fire and stores and businesses vandalized in the hours of unrest.
Under the declared emergency, police forces will be attached to the Defense Ministry with increased authority to limit the movement of residents and to close parts of the city off to the public for security purposes. Defense Minister Benny Gantz, in his capacity as Justice Minister, signed the order on Wednesday.
Lod, a city of 77,000 people, including 47,000 Jewish Israelis and 23,000 Arab Israelis, saw violent clashes beginning on Monday, when demonstrators came out in support of Palestinians who were clashing with police on the al-Aqsa compound in Jerusalem.
An Arab resident was shot dead as protests grew in the city as well as in other Israeli Arab communities. A Jewish man was arrested in connection with the shooting.
On Wednesday Ohana called for the release of the suspect. "The arrest of the shooter and his friends in Lod, who acted in self-defense, is terrible," he said.
"Law-abiding citizens carrying weapons are a force multiplier for the authorities for the immediate neutralization of threat and danger."
Ohana noted that had the detention been under his purview, "they would have been released."
Police Commissioner Kobi Shabtai who was also on hand late on Tuesday said he would be opening an office in the city. "We've not seen such a level of aggression motivated by nationalism," he said.