Yosef Eizental (14), Rammed by Bus in Haredi Anti-IDF Protest, Will Be Laid to Rest Today

A 14-year-old boy was killed and three others injured when a bus plowed into protesters during a large-scale ultra-Orthodox demonstration against Israel's military draft law in Jerusalem on Tuesday night.

Yosef Eisental, a yeshiva student from the Ramot neighborhood, was pronounced dead at the scene on Yirmiyahu Street. Three other teens, ages 14 and 17, were taken to Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital with minor injuries.

Funeral Scheduled for Wednesday

The funeral for Eisental is scheduled to depart at 1:00 PM Wednesday from the Ohel Torah study hall in the Ramot D neighborhood of Jerusalem, where the teen studied. He was the grandson of Rabbi Uriel Eisental, rabbi of the Tzahal synagogue in Ramot.

According to preliminary investigations and eyewitness accounts, tensions escalated rapidly in the moments before the ramming. The driver told police he felt threatened by the crowd surrounding his vehicle and had called for help just before the incident. Witnesses reported that protesters spat on the driver and banged on the bus.

"About 50 of us were standing in front of the bus," one eyewitness said. "Suddenly it accelerated, ran over about five people and kept going."

Another witness described a horrific scene: "The boy was dragged on the bus's license plate down the entire street. There was blood everywhere."

The fatal incident occurred about a kilometer from the main demonstration site, which drew an unusually large crowd of ultra-Orthodox protesters from across the community's more zealous factions. The timing was significant: Israel's Council of Torah Sages was scheduled to convene Wednesday for major decisions on the controversial military draft exemptions for ultra-Orthodox men.

While police maintained control at the main protest site, the situation deteriorated at secondary locations. After the ramming, chaos erupted for nearly two hours as police focused on the crash scene and evacuating casualties. With no officers to maintain order in surrounding areas, protesters threw stones and clashed violently with authorities.

Ultra-Orthodox political leaders united in demanding the driver face maximum prosecution, with little acknowledgment of the illegal nature of the demonstration itself.

"This ramming and killing of a youth at the demonstration is shocking to the core," said Moshe Gafni, chairman of the Degel HaTorah party. "We demand the driver be brought to justice and punished with the full severity of the law."

Yitzhak Goldknopf, chairman of United Torah Judaism, echoed the sentiment: "I call on Israel Police to prosecute with maximum severity and examine all angles of the investigation."

Shas party leader Aryeh Deri spoke with Police Commissioner Danny Levy, who confirmed the driver's immediate arrest and urged political leaders to help calm tensions to allow investigators to do their work.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said,"I feel deep pain over the loss of the dear yeshiva student, Yosef Eisental, of blessed memory, who was run over to death yesterday at a demonstration in Jerusalem. The circumstances of this tragic disaster will be investigated fully in order to draw all the necessary insights and lessons from it. I convey my full condolences to the Eisental family."

Netanyahu urged restraint in the aftermath of the tragedy, expressing concern about escalating tensions. "At the same time, I call for preventing an inflaming of emotions so that, God forbid, we do not experience additional disasters. The value of the sanctity of life is engraved in our heritage, and we must guard it with all our might."

He concluded his statement with a biblical reference: "Death will be swallowed up forever, and the Hashem will wipe away tears from all faces."

Baruch Dayan HaEmet.