The stabbing of a 14-year-old boy in north Tel Aviv has shaken the city, but residents of south Tel Aviv say the violence has been part of their daily lives for years.
They describe groups of teenagers roaming streets, parks and public spaces, harassing residents, damaging property and creating a climate of fear. Some are linked to the SSQ gang, while residents say others are simply groups of youths who intimidate people and look for trouble.
‘I don't leave my house’: youth gangs terrorize south Tel Aviv
Several south Tel Aviv residents told Ynet they are afraid to speak publicly or file complaints, fearing retaliation against themselves or their children.
One resident, identified by the pseudonym Gali, said she returned home one night to find stones scattered across her bedroom after the shutters had been smashed. Since then, she said, she no longer goes out alone at night.
“By 8 or 9 p.m., I don’t go down to the grocery store anymore,” she said.
Another resident, Dana, said groups of 15 to 20 youths gather in parks, shelters and public areas. During the war, she said, some blocked residents from entering shelters and damaged them. She said one teenager smashed her phone after she tried to film youths climbing over a sports hall gate.
A third resident, Shahar, said her daughter was assaulted by girls near their home and still receives psychological treatment.
Residents said the sense of abandonment is as painful as the violence itself.
“We just want to walk down the street without fear,” one woman said.
The complaints come days after the Tel Aviv District Court convicted Ismail Jarushi and 12 others, including minors and members of SSQ, as part of a plea deal. They admitted to offenses including extorting a Tel Aviv currency exchange owner and threatening him, in a case that escalated to gunfire at the business.
According to the amended indictment, the defendants demanded the man pay a debt of about 1 million shekels and threatened him and his family when he refused to pay the full amount. The plea deal does not include agreed sentences for the minors. The others are expected to receive prison terms of 13 to 45 months.
Gangs from north and south Tel Aviv fight one another
For south Tel Aviv residents, the conviction only highlights a broader problem.
“We have been living with this for years,” one resident said. “When it happens in the south, it stays with us. When it reaches north Tel Aviv, suddenly everyone is shocked.”
Superintendent Avner Dabush, investigations and intelligence officer for the Ayalon district, said police are carrying out targeted operations against violence in south Tel Aviv, particularly against youths identified with SSQ. He said the area is regularly reinforced with uniformed and undercover officers, Border Police and special units in cooperation with the municipality.
“We arrest suspects, bring them to court and use all the tools available to us,” Dabush said.
But he said many of those involved are minors, some under 14, limiting police ability to detain or prosecute them.
“In many cases, the police’s hands are more limited, and broader treatment by all government ministries is needed,” he said.
Dabush said the issue requires cooperation among education, welfare, judicial and local authorities, adding that police are working to restore residents’ sense of security.
First published: 19:52, 04.27.26