The Netanya municipality was scheduled to receive the Interior Ministry’s Proper Financial Management Award, which will be given this Monday in a ceremony at the Jerusalem Convention Center to dozens of local municipalities that have met the ministry’s standards. This years the list includes Yavne, Kiryat Bialik, Kiryat Ata and Hod Hasharon, among many others. But at the last-minute this beautiful, coastal city, a third of the way between Tel Aviv and Haifa, was taken off the list.

Netanya has been an award recipient for the past consecutive four years, and the staff at City Hall told Clacalist they were frankly surprised at the decision to withdraw them from the list. A Calcalist inquiry with the Interior Ministry revealed that the decision came after the arrest of Netanya Mayor Miriam Feirberg Ikar on suspicions of corruption. Israel police arrested Feirberg and several of her colleagues and relatives on September 7, 2016 on charges of bribery, fraud, and abuse of power. Apparently the ministry preferred to err on the side of caution, especially since the current Interior Minster, Aryeh Deri (Shas) has himself served a hefty stint in prison for embezzlement.

The Interior Minister’s Proper Financial Management Award is given once a year to dozens of municipalities in Israel that show proper financial management and responsible behavior on the part of senior officials in local government. The parameters tested include deficits, income, expenses and rates of real estate tax collections. Other areas include proper awarding of bids.

Although it does not spell it out, the rules for the award most likely do not allow for the recipients to be under police investigation.

A smuggling ring that was sneaking all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) from Israel into Gaza via the Kerem Shalom Crossing has been busted by Israeli authorities.

Shin Bet intelligence agents teamed with Israel Police and Israel Customs Authority inspectors to catch the smugglers.

The vehicles were being broken down into parts and stashed in shipments that were trucked into Gaza via the border crossing. They were re-assembled after the dismantled parts in the shipments were unloaded inside Gaza.

It is believed that more than 100 vehicles may have already been smuggled into the enclave this way, according to the Shin Bet.

The vehicles were intended for use by Hamas operatives working with the group’s Izz a-Din al-Qassam military wing.

Three arrests have been made so far in the sting; all of the suspects were Arabs from the Palestinian Authority. Several Israeli citizens are believed to be involved in the smuggling operation as well.

A terrorist stabbing attack was averted on Wednesday when alert Israeli forces serving at “Rachel’s checkpoint” became suspicious of one of the Arab residents in the area who asked to pass through and into the area.

The man aroused the suspicions of the soldiers with his behavior, and was taken aside for a body search by police.

Security forces discovered a large knife hidden beneath the man’s shirt.

The suspect was placed under arrest and subsequently transferred to security personnel for interrogation.

Israeli police prevented what could have been a serious terror attack when they caught an Arab man from the Palestinian Authority with an M-16 assault rifle Tuesday evening. as he was traveling in a car.

The man, a resident of the Palestinian Authority-controlled city of Jericho, was traveling in a car when he was stopped by Israeli police on the strength of an intelligence alert.

Along with the assault rifle, police discovered during their search a quantity of ammunition and accessories for the weapon, including a special grip and a sniper’s scope.

The suspect was transferred to security personnel for interrogation.

Two female Israeli paratroopers were attacked Monday evening after they accidentally entered the Palestinian Authority-controlled city of Tulkarem.

The city is located barely 11 kilometers (seven miles) east of Netanya.

Arab residents hurled stones at the two soldiers who had driven their vehicle into the city by mistake, according to military sources who said they sustained injuries to the head and limbs, and one soldier had shrapnel wounds to the arm.

They were were handed over to security personnel with the assistance of Israel Police and in coordination with the IDF Civil Administration, and taken for treatment to the Battalion medical station. Both are reported in good condition.

The circumstances under which the incident took place are under review.

The Israel Police Spokesperson’s office reported that around 11 PM Saturday police responded to complaints about flare shooting and firecracker throwing in Rameh, an Arab town in northern Israel. Police raided a home in the town, after stopping and detaining two minors with backpacks containing firecrackers.

A search in the home of a local resident, 20, revealed an IDF Flare gun and more than 30 bullets of various diameters.

The raid was part of an ongoing police effort to seize illegal, dangerous toys in northern villages.

The police spokesperson took the opportunity to bless “our Druze, Muslim and Circassian brethren” on the occasion of the festival of Eid al-Adha.

Netanya Mayor Miriam Feirberg Ikar is expected to be invited for police questioning with a warning, as part of a large-scale investigation of the Netanya municipality which culminated with a raid of city hall Monday morning. A senior source in the police has told Haaretz that the mayor and members of her family may be suspects. Searches in the homes and offices of several suspects as well as offices in Netanya’s city hall building have yielded documents and other content. Three men, including an attorney and a developer have been detained for questioning.

According to an Haaretz investigation, the mayor’s family members have been involved in construction projects associated with members of tycoon Yitzhak Tshuva, the chairman of El-Ad Group which owned the New York Plaza Hotel.

Investigators of the Lahav 433 crime-fighting umbrella organization within the Israel Police along with Income Tax investigators on Monday carried out raids in multiple locations in the coastal city of Netanya. Also on hand were the Prohibition of Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism Authority, and the State Attorney’s Economic Department. A preliminary announcement states that the investigation is based on suspicion that elements involved in construction have promoted their interests illegally with the Netanya municipality, among other things through bribery and while committing tax violations.

Back in 2007 police closed a similar investigation of Mayor Feirberg for lack of sufficient evidence.

Feirberg is the first female mayor elected in Netanya and one of very few women who have served as mayors in Israel. She was first elected in 1998, and again in 2003, 2008 and 2013. She has won a prize for efficient management from the Union of Local Authorities in Israel.

Netanya is one of the most affluent cities in Israel, and has attracted a large population of Russian and French immigrants. The city is considered one of the cleanest in Israel, with a long stretch of sandy beaches. It features of balanced mix of secular, national-religious and Haredi Jews, and is home to a growing Arab population.