New details emerged on Wednesday about the ramming incident that occurred last night during a Chareidi demonstration in Jerusalem, in which Yosef Eisenthal, z’l, 14, was killed.

Footage shows dozens of Chareidi youth surrounding the bus and preventing the driver from moving, including banging on his windshield. The bus driver called the police to report the attack.

But then, the driver accelerated at full force, plowing into the bochurim, dragging two of them under his wheel, and then turning into another street, running over Eisenthal, z’l, and then continuing driving for several meters.

Dubi Cohen said, “There were masses of bochurim in front of him. He simply flung large numbers of them away. I saw two bochurim being dragged under the wheels.”

Witness Yaakov Zimberg told Channel 12 News, “The bus arrived, and bochurim blocked it. He called the police for help. They touched his windshield wipers, blocked him, and hit the windshield. Suddenly, he hit the gas full throttle.”

Another eyewitness told Ynet, “They stopped the driver and spat at him. He then plowed into the Chareidim and ran them over. I was thrown aside. He turned into another street, ran over three more people there, and now there’s a kid who was crushed by the bus.”

Moshe, who was at the scene, told Ynet, “The driver was going 70–80 km per hour He reached the intersection, turned, saw a child approaching, and didn’t stop—we all saw what happened next.”

The police announced on Wednesday morning that the driver, Fakhri Khatib, will be charged with the offenses of murder under aggravated circumstances and reckless driving.

However, the police later decided to change the charges to negligent homicide, causing severe injury to a minor, and reckless driving. At a hearing at the Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday afternoon, a police representative said, “We removed the murder charge after review.”

Khatib, a 49-year-old resident of East Jerusalem, was brought before the court, and police initially requested to extend his detention by 15 days.

During the hearing, the driver’s defense attorney said that he “was attacked, spat upon, and felt in danger.” He added that the driver did not see the boy at the front of the bus: “He acted to save his life without intending to harm people.” He also claimed that it was a political investigation and asked why no Chareidi protesters had been arrested. Judge Sharon Lary-Babli responded sharply, referring to police video footage.

“He doesn’t see them?” she said. “He doesn’t see 20 children are standing in front of him?” Babli raised her voice at the lawyer: “How is the driver the victim when there is a dead child? At least say that he’s also the victim.”

The judge ruled that he will remain in custody for nine days. She said, “Another video shows the bus charging toward the protesters. The defense claims the driver feared for his life, called the police and could not reverse because protesters were behind him. I believe the driver felt danger, and the phone call supports that claim. I also believe that being spat at and attacked is a stressful situation.”

“However,” she added, “I do not believe that driving rapidly into a crowd was the correct option. The victim is the deceased, not the driver. I do not accept the claim that this is a political case.”

A police representative told the court that senior Israel Prison Service and police officials were present at the hearing due to the severity of the case. She said the high level of danger posed by the suspect stemmed from “the audacity of driving at speed into a crowd of teenagers.”

The incident was initially designated as a hit-and-run during a disturbance of public order, but in the wake of developments in the investigation, the charge was changed to murder—a decision that was reversed hours later.

An initial police investigation indicated that after the ramming, the bus driver continued driving for about 500 meters with the youth trapped beneath the bus. The driver was arrested for questioning and claimed he was trying to “escape” after protesters blocked his path. The head of the “Extra” Bus company was summoned for a hearing at the Ministry of Transportation.

The company stated, “We are shocked by the incident and wish to share in the grief of the family and the community. The incident is under police investigation, and the company is fully cooperating and will provide any information required.”

Jerusalem District Commander, Deputy Commissioner Avshalom Peled, addressed the incident on Wednesday afternoon, saying, “Last night a serious ramming incident occurred during a public order disturbance that developed at one of the city’s junctions.

“At the outset of my remarks, Israel Police shares in the heavy grief of the deceased’s family, and I send them my condolences.”

“The serious incident occurred at a central intersection, which was not part of the protest area, as we designated it as a critical route that remained open to vehicle traffic to enable routine life in the area.

“The bus driver suspected of involvement in the incident was immediately arrested and transferred for questioning. During his investigation, he claimed he felt distress and tried to leave the area. I want to emphasize here that this claim does not detract from the severity of the incident, and the investigation continues with full severity while examining all investigative directions and collecting findings and evidence.”

“Israel Police respects the Chareidi public, and my door as district commander is always open to any dialogue. The protest rally that took place with police approval on Bar Ilan Street took place in an orderly manner.”

“As Israel Police and Jerusalem District Police, we will continue to act and enable freedom of protest while maintaining public order and the safety of all citizens.”

(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)

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