Four Arrested After Brawl at Rahat Polling Station

A fight between members of two feuding families broke out in the voting line in Rahat. Police arrested four people and said more arrests were possible.

A violent brawl broke out at a polling station in the Negev city of Rahat on Tuesday, October 27, as voters waited in line to cast their ballots. Police arrested four people, Israel Hayom reported.

Video of the incident shows several men fighting inside the building, with one man lying on the floor as the fight continues around him.

The fight took place in a corridor decorated with colorful murals, as crowds built up at polling stations in Bedouin towns in the south.

A fight in the voting line

The brawl started among people standing in the queue to vote. The footage shows groups of men charging at each other in a hallway with children's murals and artificial grass, while others try to pull them apart.

Israel National News published the video under the headline "Brawl at voting site in Rahat."

Four arrested, more arrests possible

Police said four of those involved were arrested, according to Israel Hayom. Police added that further arrests were possible as the investigation continued.

A family feud behind the violence

According to Israel Hayom, the fight involved members of two families with an existing feud, who met while waiting to vote and began fighting.

Long queues were reported at polling stations across the country on Tuesday, including in the Bedouin sector. Polls close at 22:00.

Vote buying arrests in the Negev

Overnight, police arrested three suspects from the Bedouin towns of Segev Shalom and Arara BaNegev on suspicion of offering voters money to vote for the Ra'am party. Police seized envelopes containing tens of thousands of shekels in cash.

Ra'am filed a complaint with the Central Elections Committee, saying the party was being targeted after its activists were arrested and its ballot slips were hidden and damaged.