Police stop illegal camel race in Negev firing zone

Southern District police stopped an illegal camel race in a Negev firing zone Friday morning, storming the site while organisers were still setting up. The operation followed precise intelligence on the planned event.

According to the Israel Police, the operation began early in the morning after intelligence was received about preparations for a camel race in a firing zone near Route 222 in the Bir Hadaj area. Southern District forces deployed to the location and identified the arrival of vehicles, carts and participants at the site.

Officers from Sgev Shalom station, working with fighters from the Yoav unit, Border Police and the National Guard of Southern Border Police, raided the site with support and direction from the Israel Police air unit. The swift raid stopped the race before it could begin.

As forces entered the site, numerous vehicles scattered from the location. Directed by the air unit, officers located two minors who attempted to flee and hide in bushes near a camel. The two were detained for further handling and questioning at Sgev Shalom station, and the camel was seized.

The operation is part of an enforcement effort led by the Southern District to locate and prevent illegal camel races at an early stage. Police are working within this framework against phenomena of lawlessness and offences that endanger human life, combining intelligence capabilities, ground forces and the air unit.

Illegal camel races take place in open areas and firing zones in the Negev and pose a danger to the public. Police continue intensive activity to locate and prevent events of this type.