Organised crime in Australia
Middle Eastern gangs
Middle Eastern gangs
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Middle\-Eastern gangs rose to prominence around 1995–1996 in Australia, most prominently in Sydney. By 2000, the middle Eastern gangs had gained ground in Sydney, conducting extortion against nightclubs, [ram raids](/wiki/Ram_raid "Ram raid"), and car theft. More recently, drive\-by shootings have become more common, with tit for tat drive by shooting starting as early as 1998, and becoming more common in recent years.[http://www.livenews.com.au/Article/Index/197671?channel\=home](http://www.livenews.com.au/Article/Index/197671?channel=home) including a drive by machine gun attack on a police station in Lakemba, Sydney. In 2006, concerns over the lack of intelligence in the wake of revenge attacks, which included stabbings and assaults, by Middle Eastern youths following the Cronulla riots; led the NSW Police to set up a permanent Middle\-Eastern Organised Crime squad similar in vein to the existing Asian Crime Squad.

As of 2024, the ongoing feud between the [Alameddine crime network](/wiki/Alameddine_crime_network "Alameddine crime network") and the [Brothers for Life](/wiki/Brothers_for_Life "Brothers for Life") of the Hamzy family has led to at least 11 shooting deaths.[https://www.news.com.au/national/nsw\-act/crime/sydney\-gangland\-war\-inside\-bloody\-alameddine\-and\-hamzy\-feud/news\-story/fdf2e52406788cea696d536c864e1710](https://www.news.com.au/national/nsw-act/crime/sydney-gangland-war-inside-bloody-alameddine-and-hamzy-feud/news-story/fdf2e52406788cea696d536c864e1710) 


How might the presence of Middle Eastern gangs affect community relations or social cohesion in areas where they operate?