Social Equality Minister May Golan has proposed diverting NIS 3.1 billion ($960,000) from programs aimed at boosting Arab economic development and sending to the National Security Ministry, the Israel Police, the Shin Bet intelligence service and her own ministry.

The planned transfer comes as Golan is being investigated by police for fraud and misusing public funds, leading some critics to claim that the move represents a conflict of interest and describe it as a kickback. There is no evidence of any link between the probe and the transfer, which supporters say is necessary to address the ongoing crime wave rocking Arab communities.

Her proposal states that the funds will be used to “address crime and violence in Arab society,” but the money will be taken from a five-year program designed to bring Arab communities on par with Jewish counterparts in areas such as housing, policing, and economic development after decades of neglect.

Arab community leaders have expressed strong opposition to the proposed cuts and have long accused Golan — known for her anti-Arab and anti-migrant rhetoric — of refusing to implement the plan since taking over the ministry last year by freezing funds; firing the ministry’s director, who was charged with executing the five-year plan; and halting the standing committee that oversaw the allocation of the plan’s budget.

The groundbreaking NIS 30 billion ($8.3 billion) program was created in 2021 under the short-lived Naftali Bennett-Yair Lapid-led government, with the Social Equality Ministry bearing most of the responsibility for implementation.

The vast majority of the redirected funds would go to the National Security Ministry and the Shin Bet, with most of the allocations spread across 2025 and 2026.

Funds will be used to establish a national police unit to address “mid-level crime in Arab society,” for technological upgrades and digital integration within law enforcement, and for a new national intelligence unit targeting organized crime in the Arab sector.

NIS 305 million ($93 million) will go to Golan’s Social Equality ministry to establish a team tasked with integrating Arab youth in academia, employment, and national civil........

© The Times of Israel