- Driver’s attorney says suspect felt his life was in danger as demonstrators gathered around bus; 14-year-old killed and three injured in incident
Police were set to charge a bus driver who fatally ran over an ultra-Orthodox teenager and wounded several others in Jerusalem with aggravated murder, ahead of his appearance in court for a remand hearing on Wednesday.
Yosef Eisenthal, 14, was killed and three other teens were injured at an intersection in Jerusalem’s ultra-Orthodox neighborhood of Romema when a bus rammed into Haredi protesters, as tens of thousands of people attended an anti-conscription demonstration on Tuesday night.
Police are seeking to keep the driver in custody for an additional 15 days, and will charge him with aggravated murder, marking a turnaround from earlier statements that indicated he felt threatened.
The bus rammed the protesters on Shamgar Street, then continued on to Ohel Yehoshua Street, where it hit another pedestrian. MDA said two of the victims were 14 and 17 years old.
Graphic video from the scene showed the bus driving through the intersection, where protesters had lit a fire in the road, and a victim being pushed underneath it as bystanders scream.
The Times of Israel witnessed emergency responders attempting to extricate somebody from under the bus on Ohel Yehoshua Street, before being pushed away by police.
January 6, 2026.
Police said that a preliminary investigation found that the bus driver was attacked by rioters who were blocking the road before the deadly incident.
Hebrew media outlets reported that the driver had called the emergency police hotline to request help as protesters gathered around his bus, accosting him and preventing him from driving, which a video first published by Channel 14 appeared to show.
Jad Qadamani, who is representing the driver, told Haaretz on Wednesday that his client felt his life was in danger at the time and was trying to flee the area.
“Only when I met him last night did he understand he had run over someone,” the lawyer said.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised on Wednesday that Eisenthal’s death “will be thoroughly investigated in order to draw all the necessary conclusions and lessons.”
In a statement, Netanyahu offered his condolences to Eisenthal’s family and called for “preventing an escalation of tensions, so that, God forbid, we do not experience further disasters.”
January 6, 2026.
Eisenthal’s funeral was set for 1 p.m. on Wednesday in Jerusalem’s Ramot neighborhood.
Ultra-Orthodox lawmakers were quick to condemn the ramming and expressed sympathy for the victims, as did other politicians from both sides of the aisle.
Some ultra-Orthodox lawmakers blamed the incident on what they said was incitement against the Haredi public, which is embroiled in an ongoing battle over mandatory military service, which its members have long sought to avoid.
Other politicians who commented on the ramming refrained from accusing the bus driver of murder.
Tuesday night’s rally, which was the initiative of a group of leading ultra-Orthodox rabbis, opened with fiery speeches and descended into chaos as the evening wore on, with protesters setting several fires in the middle of the neighborhood’s Yirmiyahu Street, and blocking the intersection with Shamgar Street.
BY: The Times Union – Mr. Sam Sokol contributed to this report.
