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One day the General Manager of a local company in Israel's Southern region contacted us with an invitation to have a meeting at his facility that would also include a field tour. The only thing he mentioned on the phone was "That we all suffer the same reality here…, but I am looking for a new solution". Only once we met him in person and received a field tour, did we realize the scope and severity of the problem.
During our meeting, we were joined by the CEO of a neighboring company, based close by. He joined us in the hopes of finding a solution to the same problem as well.
Both sites are located in an area that is populated by a local Bedouin tribe. Bedouin are nomadic people who live in Arab Countries in the Middle East including in Israel, culturally, the Bedouin usually live in the same area as their family members as well as their tribe. The Bedouin Mafias consist mainly of large "crime families" and even entire tribes that are active in Israel and in the Palestinian territories. The presence of the local Bedouin tribe was clearly noticeable as one of the perimeter fences of the site was being used by the Bedouin to house their livestock and even hang up laundry.
During the subsequent meeting and tour, it became further clear to what extent the damages, harassment, and fear made an impact on both facilities situated in the same area. The financial impact, as well as the impact it had on the morale of the local employees, was severe.
It turned out, that for years both companies had been paying the local Bedouin mafia massive amounts of "protection money" on a monthly basis. In addition, both sites suffered near-permanent damages and harassment as a 'reminder' to why they must pay…
During our meeting the CEO told us that he is sick of having to pay more and more protection money and that he had decided to take matters into his own hands and "change the status quo", he did this (somewhat unwisely) in the form of paying a different Bedouin mafia protection money. This was clearly not a good solution as instead; it ignited a vicious rivalry conflict between the two local tribes which quickly turned violent and amounted to heavy material losses at the sites.
Following our meeting we shook hands (Yes, back in 2014 we still shook hands ;-) and we sent both CEO's a separate Security plan which aimed to mitigate and solve the problem of "protection payments". As a result, one of the CEO's accepted the security plan whereas the other CEO turned it down, effectively choosing to continue paying the same protection payment game. We will get back to both of these companies later in this article.
As readers, it may be hard to relate to this problem, or it may be even hard to understand the situation as a whole and the internal dilemmas it causes. This story may even just seem like one in a 1000 cases of bad luck, something that "doesn’t really happen on a large scale…" However, the truth is that the phenomenon of "Protection" in Israel is far, far greater than most people can imagine.
Although this extortion scheme of "Protection Money" has existed forever, it used to be limited mainly to more remote locations in Southern Israel, mainly those that are populated by Bedouin. However, nowadays it has become a Nationwide problem, a phenomenon that occurs throughout the entirety of Israel. Not only are small farms paying protection money, but large corporations, large factories, and construction projects are being extorted. Even local Government institutions and contractors are falling victim to this scheme.
Nowadays, extortion is often conducted under the guise of so-called "security companies" or phony businesses that in reality are just a kind of legal cover-up for this blackmail. The annual fees paid per year in Israel are estimated to be in the billions of shekels. (Source: Multiple Israeli news articles on the topic)
The phenomenon of protection in Israel is not openly spoken of (Update: Following recent severe cases of protection money-related violence, this is being discussed more frequently in 2021). There are several reasons for this, but elaborating on this would require a whole other blog post in itself.
The one factor I would like to speak of in this post is that of the "Security Manager" (CSO). Over the years that I have studied the phenomenon of protection money in Israel, it has become clear that protection payments are being shoved under the table, in turn leaving Security Managers under-equipped to deal with this massive problem. To make things worse, security managers are often left completely alone with the police rarely getting involved if at all. This can leave the security managers with a strong feeling of standing alone, powerlessness, leaving them to feel vulnerable and humiliated.
This essentially forms one of the biggest problems in combatting Protection. Once you give in and once you decide to pay the protection money, you show weakness and it has proven to only get worse from there…
The method
In one word – intimidation.
Protection consists of threats, extortion and vandalism and in some cases physical violence that gradually increases in severity over time.
Here is a common scenario: A person enters a construction site and approaches the local manager: "Do you need a guard?". This may seem like a question, but in fact it is more of a statement saying "you need a guard".
In case the "guard offer" is refused initially, the manager will typically arrive at the construction site early in the morning the next day, only to find that the site has been "opened" by someone before him. "Good morning, I am the guard..." In case of a second refusal, the local manager will typically get a call in the middle of the night: "The bulldozer has been set on fire". In other words, you need the protection service as the alternative is clear…
Fear has the ability to darken reality. The impact that fear has in most of these cases gradually increases over time until it completely distorts the reality, we live in. It can become overwhelming.
Intimidation is the main modus operandi that the Bedouin Mafia extortionists use. In most cases, we lose this war long before the first battle begins, namely through intimidation. The fear of this is internal and it already exists in our heads in the form of stories, imagination and fear. We run a host of scenarios in our heads that could unfold. This fear neutralizes our ability to analyze the threats of the extorters just like we would analyze any other threat we commonly learn about and deal with. What happens in the end is most likely "giving in" at a certain stage, the relatively low amount of protection money that is demanded in the beginning becomes tempting, but the sum gradually increases over time, and only later it becomes clear that the low-sum of protection money that was paid in the beginning just served as a foot in the door.
The solution
In one word – resilience.
In most cases, in Israel, remaining resilient and confronting fear is the most effective way of breaking it down. Remaining determined and resilient essentially disarms the "attackers" from their primary weapon, fear.
One of our clients is a large infrastructure construction company in Southern Israel. This type of company is especially vulnerable to Bedouin mafia extortions, as heavy tools & machinery are often left exposed on-site overnight. (these are often either sabotaged, damaged or simply stolen) Most similar companies just pay the protection money, some even tend to include it when creating their annual budget.
A few years ago one of our clients decided to show resilience and face the threat head-on. He suffered repeated thefts and vandalism. Heavy machinery was even stolen after which he received a phone call: "Are you interested in buying them back at a reduced price?". He refused, and after each theft, he would pay NIS 100,000 to buy a new unit or component, instead of just paying the requested NIS 20,000 to buy the same component that was stolen from him. This was done again and again. Since this stolen component only suits a specific unit or piece of machinery, the extortionists were left with NIS 0 Value from the theft, and after three cases the thefts stopped.
Fear was replaced with resilience.
Quickly the extortionists understood that these attempts were no longer profitable for them and they ceased trying.
There is a natural perception that when we remain resilient, we will naturally contribute to an escalation of the situation, an escalation of threats, and possibly even violence. However, this fear remains unfounded in most cases, in fact, the contrary is true. Remaining resilient only makes your position stronger, while giving in will significantly empower the extortionists.
Remember, the other side is pragmatic. For them, the protection money is just a source of livelihood. An escalation requires further allocation of time, resources and energy, and most importantly it requires crossing red lines. Due to the "Gray" nature of how the Bedouin mafias operate, they enjoy relative immunity from the law for their actions. Should they cross red lines however and resort to more serious threats such as death threats, violence and a generally more aggressive approach, then they risk having to deal with the Police, as the police would be forced to get involved. In the last case, the chances for the extortionists of winning are far smaller. In other words, the Bedouin mafias generally have a low-risk appetite and prefer minimal effort and maximum gains, in turn drawing their efforts elsewhere to softer targets.
The new reality
Bedouin Settlement in the South of Israel
Returning to the two CEO's from the beginning of this article.
Six years after meeting with both of them, the site that used to cope with terrible extortions in the past has been enjoying a period of long-term calm despite numerous attempts of extortion and harassment by Tribes from other areas trying their luck. None of them succeeded. This after the company had decided to impose the new security plan that we had specially created for them.
In the meantime, a new CEO had been appointed to the second (neighboring) company who in turn invited me over for a meeting. Over the last 6 years, they have been dealing with the Bedouin mafia extortion, paying them monthly, however, the local Bedouin mafia kept making the demands higher and higher. Now the CEO was looking for a new solution as well.
Once the meeting took place the new CEO of the company showed a determination to stop paying the protection money to the local Bedouin mafia and was presented again with the same plan that his predecessor CEO had declined. However, the new CEO quickly got cold feet and asked to consult the predecessor CEO for his opinion. This way, fear once again snuck into the equation.
The story of these two neighboring sites is a prime example of the reality of "Protection" extortion here in Israel. The story shows that two companies, in the same area, facing the same threat and with a similar budget can handle differently and in turn experience completely different outcomes.
After years of studying the field of Protection one thing keeps standing out – Fear. By giving in to fear, one is forced to pay the protection money and in turn winds up in an endless spiral of threats, fear, and harassment. It also tends to weaken the Chief Security Officer over the years as weakness is seen as submission by the extortionists which can further be exploited.
However, change is possible. It is possible to create a new reality.
It is a reality that requires resilience, determination, and perseverance, only this way can the battle be won against those that extort protection money out of us.
At times where Risk, Threat & Vulnerability audits have become popularized, it is important to highlight one of the biggest issues that are INTENTIONALLY being left out of those reports.
We hope this article was informative and has contributed to your understanding of the reality of Bedouin mafia extortion schemes here in Israel and the financial, security, and moral impact they can have on businesses & investments based in Israel.
Have you ever had to deal with a similar situation in your home country? Please feel free to share these experiences in the hopes that we can create a productive open dialogue on the subject.
If you are ever in a need of help dealing with protection cases, please feel free to reach us out and we will do our best to assist info@o-scs.com
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