23-year-old allegedly murders his two sisters in family home in Jaffa

Incident comes hours after mother, daughter found dead in suspected murder-suicide

A 23-year-old man allegedly killed his two sisters in their family home in Jaffa early Thursday morning – and then called the police to report it.

Police who arrived at the scene found the two young women, aged 19 and 21, in their beds with their throats slit. The young man who reported the incident was also in the apartment and was arrested.

Israeli media reported that the suspect had a history of mental illness and was known to the welfare services and police.

Other family members were home when he allegedly committed the murders.

Neighbors told media that 13 people lived in the apartment in difficult conditions. They also related that they often heard noise, shouting and arguments emanating from the apartment. One neighbor told Channel 2 News that they frequently informed police and social workers about the situation.

The murders occurred less than 24 hours after a mother and daughter were found stabbed to death in their Tiberias apartment. The mother had called the police to report the stabbing before succumbing to her wounds. It is suspected that her daughter, who reportedly suffered from mental illness, had committed a murder-suicide.

Also on Wednesday, a one-year-old baby in a kindergarten died in Petah Tikva. According to a local report, the staff tried to wake the baby from her afternoon nap; when she didn’t wake up, they called rescue services who rushed to the scene and tried to resuscitate her. An intensive-care unit evacuated the baby to Schneider Children’s Medical Center where doctors pronounced her dead.

In a separate incident in the city, the Petah Tikva Magistrate’s Court released a kindergarten teacher who was suspected of assaulting a 5-year-old boy on Tuesday. The boy was brought to Schneider Children’s Medical Center for medical tests; it was found that he had a broken arm. The medical team reported its findings and police opened an investigation into the incident, bringing the teacher in for questioning. She was then brought to court and her remand was extended. During her second hearing the court decided to release her under restrictive conditions, including five days of house arrest and a restraining order from the kindergarten. The police investigation is ongoing.

Judy Siegel-Itzkovich contributed to this report.