RAMALLAH, Wednesday, March 27, 2019 (WAFA) – Murder rate in the West Bank dropped by 29 percent in 2018 compared to the previous year and has been in decline since 2015, the Palestinian police said today.

Police spokesman Loay Irzeikat said while 54 murder cases were recorded in 2015, this rate dropped to 43 in 2016, 34 in 2017 and 24 in 2018.

He said only three women were among those murdered last year, which indicated a sharp decline in honor killing in the traditional Palestinian society registering only 12 percent of the total number of murders.

Irzeikat said that the reasons for the murder varied from one case to another, which proves that there is no organized crime in Palestine.

He said that most of the killing happened as a result of dispute or fight over land, money or differences between children, which often result in fights during which a weapon (in 62 percent of the cases) or sharp instrument (21 percent) is used.

The highest murder rate was among people aged between 27 and 35 years (29 percent) and the lowest was among those over 45 years (12 percent).

Irzeikat said the decline could be attributed to rise in awareness among people that they can resolve their difference by going to law enforcement officers and the courts.

M.K.