A dad and his two-year-old son have been gunned down just before Christmas in a suspected gangland killing in the biblical city of Nazareth.

Police say the man who died – Firas Heib, 33 – died instantly, while his son Fares was critically injured and died later at the EMMS Nazareth Hospital, Israel.

Firas was known to police as an extortionist and was considered to be a member of the local Hariri crime family.

They believe the incident, which happened on Tuesday, 20th December, was related to criminal gangs operating in Arab societies and linked with another shooting in Nazareth earlier last week.

They said a 33-year-old man was shot dead in his car, with reportedly a second man aged 44 sitting next to him wounded and hospitalised.

The latest killing means that there have now been 110 murders in the Arab community since the start of the year, according to local media.

Of these, 93 died from gunshot wounds, and the majority – 64 of them – were younger than 30.

The violence has been described as an academic in Arab areas of Israel with the police accused of not doing enough to tackle the problem.

The two victims were in their car at the time of the shooting and two people have reportedly been arrested in connection with the incident.

Israel’s outgoing Prime Minister Yair Lapid was one of those who offered condolences to the family of the two dead, saying in a statement obtained by Newsflash that petty officials would “do everything to bring the murderers to justice.”

He added: “We must continue the campaign against violent crime in Israel.”