Are Arab Israelis Arrested More Than Jewish Israelis?
65% of arrests of people aged 18 to 34 were of non-Jews in 2023 to 2024, on the Knesset Centre’s compilation of police data.
65% of arrests of people aged 18 to 34 were of non-Jews, the Knesset Research and Information Centre reported on 14 July 2025 for the years 2023 to 2024. The same paper counts 603,700 Arabs among about 2,263,200 residents aged 18 to 34 in 2023, about 27%, on Central Bureau of Statistics figures. The enforcement shares are the Israel Police’s own counts of its own activity, compiled by the Centre, and they cover the 18 to 34 age band alone.
| Figure | What it counts | Who published it | Period |
|---|---|---|---|
| 65% | Share of arrests of people aged 18 to 34 that were of non-Jews, on police enforcement data | Knesset Research and Information Centre | 2023 to 2024 |
| 46% | Share of open files for ages 18 to 34 recorded against non-Jews | Knesset Research and Information Centre | 2023 |
| 43% | Share of indictments for ages 18 to 34 against non-Jews | Knesset Research and Information Centre | 2023 |
| 603,700 | Arabs aged 18 to 34, about 27% of the 2,263,200 residents in that band | Central Bureau of Statistics, cited by the Knesset Research and Information Centre | 2023 |
| about 830,000 | Adults holding a Police Registry record for files closed without indictment, with no breakdown by population group | State Comptroller of Israel | June 2021 |
| about 201 per 100,000 | Christians judged in criminal trials, with no comparable Jewish rate in the release | Central Bureau of Statistics | Year of judgement 2023 |
65% of arrests of people aged 18 to 34 were of non-Jews
The Knesset Research and Information Centre published the figure in a 12-page paper written by Dr Nurit Yakhimovich-Cohen and approved by Orly Almagor-Lotan, dated 14 July 2025. The share covers arrests made across 2023 and 2024, and the underlying count is the Israel Police’s own record of its own arrests, compiled by the Centre from police enforcement data. An arrest is an act of the enforcement system, and the paper counts arrests rather than offences.
- What it counts: arrests, not charges, convictions or offences
- Whom it counts: people aged 18 to 34 recorded as non-Jews in police data
- Period: 2023 to 2024
- Whose count it is: the Israel Police, compiled and published by the Knesset Research and Information Centre
Arabs were about 27% of Israel’s 2,263,200 young adults
The Knesset Research and Information Centre records 9,633,000 residents of Israel in 2023, of whom about 2,263,200 were aged 18 to 34. Of those young adults, 603,700 were Arabs, about 27%, which the Centre attributes to the Central Bureau of Statistics Statistical Abstract 2024, table 2.3. The 27% is a share of the 18 to 34 band and not of the resident population as a whole.
| Group | Count | Share of the age band |
|---|---|---|
| Residents aged 18 to 34 | about 2,263,200 | 100% |
| Arabs aged 18 to 34 | 603,700 | about 27% |
| All residents of Israel | 9,633,000 | not applicable |
Source: Central Bureau of Statistics, Statistical Abstract 2024, table 2.3, for 2023, as cited by the Knesset Research and Information Centre.
Non-Jews were 46% of open files and 43% of indictments in 2023
For 2023, the Knesset Research and Information Centre reported the non-Jewish share separately at each stage of enforcement and for each file type. Every share below is a share of files or indictments for people aged 18 to 34, taken from the Israel Police’s own enforcement records and compiled by the Centre. Arrest, file opening and indictment are separate stages, and each carries its own share.
The Knesset paper counts non-Jews, not Arabs, across ages 18 to 34
The enforcement shares in the paper are published for non-Jews, the classification used in the Israel Police’s own data, while the population figure of 603,700 is published for Arabs. The two categories are close and they are not the same universe. The periods differ as well: the arrest share covers 2023 to 2024, the file and indictment shares cover 2023, and the population figures are for 2023.
- Category: enforcement shares are for non-Jews; the population share is for Arabs
- Age: every enforcement share is restricted to people aged 18 to 34
- Period: arrests 2023 to 2024, files and indictments 2023, population 2023
- Level: the shares describe police and prosecution activity, not offending
No Israeli body here publishes arrests by group for all ages
The Knesset Research and Information Centre paper stops at age 34, and the Israeli records used here carry no all-ages arrest comparison between Arab and Jewish citizens. The State Comptroller of Israel counted about 830,000 adults, about 13% of Israel’s adult population, holding a Police Registry record for a file closed without an indictment in June 2021, and 54,865 suspects’ files closed for lack of evidence in 2020, on Israel Police and State Attorney’s Office data, with no breakdown by population group anywhere in that audit. The Central Bureau of Statistics publishes a rate of persons judged in criminal trials for Christians in Israel, about 201 per 100,000 with about 176 per 100,000 convicted for year of judgement 2023, and prints no comparable Jewish rate in that release.
- Knesset Research and Information Centre, 2025: ages 18 to 34 only
- State Comptroller of Israel, 2022: no population-group breakdown of closed files
- Central Bureau of Statistics, 2025: a Christian rate with no Jewish comparator in the same release
Which figures here may not be divided into one another?
The 65% arrest share and the 27% population share describe different categories, non-Jews in one and Arabs in the other, so a ratio built from them is arithmetic no body published. The State Comptroller’s 830,000 is a stock of adults holding a record at one date, not an annual arrest count, and it carries no population-group breakdown. The Central Bureau of Statistics rate for Christians is per 100,000 persons and belongs to year of judgement 2023, a different universe again from the police file counts. Every enforcement figure on this page is the Israel Police’s own count of its own activity, compiled by the Knesset Research and Information Centre.
Questions readers ask
Are Arab citizens of Israel arrested more often than Jewish citizens?
The Knesset Research and Information Centre reported that 65% of arrests of people aged 18 to 34 in 2023 to 2024 were of non-Jews, on the Israel Police’s own enforcement data, and put Arabs at about 27% of that age band in 2023.
What is the Arab share of Israel’s population aged 18 to 34?
The Knesset Research and Information Centre records 603,700 Arabs among about 2,263,200 residents aged 18 to 34 in 2023, about 27%, citing the Central Bureau of Statistics.
Does the 65% cover all ages?
No. The Knesset Research and Information Centre published the share for people aged 18 to 34 only.
Why does the paper say non-Jews rather than Arabs?
The Knesset Research and Information Centre reported the enforcement shares for non-Jews, the category used in the Israel Police data it compiled, and reported the population figure for Arabs.
What share of indictments involved non-Jews?
The Knesset Research and Information Centre recorded 43% of indictments for people aged 18 to 34 in 2023.
Which file category carried the highest non-Jewish share?
The Knesset Research and Information Centre recorded 90% for agricultural crime files in 2023.
Do these figures measure who committed offences?
The Knesset Research and Information Centre reported counts of police activity: files opened, arrests made and indictments filed for people aged 18 to 34.
Does the State Comptroller publish arrests by population group?
The State Comptroller of Israel counted about 830,000 adults holding a Police Registry record in June 2021 for files closed without indictment, and published no breakdown by population group.
Does the Central Bureau of Statistics publish criminal justice rates by group?
The Central Bureau of Statistics recorded about 201 Christians per 100,000 judged in criminal trials and about 176 per 100,000 convicted for year of judgement 2023, and printed no comparable Jewish rate in that release.
What period do the file-type shares cover?
The Knesset Research and Information Centre published the file and indictment shares for 2023, and the arrest share for 2023 to 2024.
Can the 65% be divided by the 27%?
Neither the Knesset Research and Information Centre nor the Central Bureau of Statistics published such a ratio, and the two shares describe different categories and different periods.
Sources
- Central Bureau of Statistics, 2024. Statistical Abstract of Israel 2024, table 2.3. Cited by the Knesset Research and Information Centre. Official or primary record.
- Central Bureau of Statistics, 2025. Christmas 2025, Christians in Israel. Media release. cbs.gov.il. Official or primary record.
- Knesset Research and Information Centre, 2025. Crime and Delinquency of Young Arabs, Enforcement Data. 14 July 2025. fs.knesset.gov.il. Official or primary record.
- State Comptroller of Israel, 2022. Closing Criminal Files by the Israel Police and the Office of the State Attorney. State Comptroller Report, May 2022, Chapter One. mevaker.gov.il. Official or primary record.
