Two 14-year-old girls were detained for questioning on suspicion of involvement in the violent beating of another girl in south Tel Aviv in February, police said on Monday, after footage of the incident circulated widely online.
Another 15-year-old girl was previously arrested in the case and has been released under restrictive conditions, police said.
The victim, aged 12, was on her way home from school when she was ambushed by a group of girls who pulled her hair, broke one of her teeth and stole her cellphone, according to Hebrew media.
The victim was lightly injured and required medical treatment, police said.
Channel 12 reported Monday that the victim’s family believes she was targeted by members of SSQ, a youth gang active in Tel Aviv’s Shapira neighborhood.
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According to the family, the girl was targeted because her brother had complained to the police earlier this year that some gang members had mugged him.
Haaretz reported last year that the gang is made up mostly of the teenage children of African workers and asylum seekers. Its name stands for Shapira SQuad, after the neighborhood, which has large Eritrean and Sudanese populations.
אלימות, לא פוסקת תיעוד מת״א:
כנופיית SSQ מת״א תקפה באכזריות ילדה בת 12, שברה את שיניה ושדדה ממנה את מכשיר הטלפון שלה.
הרקע: מספר ימים קודם לכן הכנופייה תקפה את אחי הילדה ושדדה אותם, ואלו הגישו תלונה במשטרה, ובתגובה לכך על פי החשד האחות קיבלה מכות ונשדדה. אחת מהתוקפות נעצרה. pic.twitter.com/07WsDDQkLN
— מה חדש. What’s new❓ (@Gloz111) April 27, 2026
Thousands of migrants and asylum seekers from Africa entered Israel illegally from Egypt between 2006 and 2013 when Israel completed a wall along the border. The majority settled in south Tel Aviv.
Asylum seekers from Africa and their supporters in Israel say they fled for their lives and face danger if they return.
Their opponents, including many in the right-wing governments that have dominated Israeli politics for the past 20 years, say they are just looking to improve their socio-economic situation, threaten the Jewish character of Israel and have brought crime to south Tel Aviv.
Sue Surkes and Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.
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