2024-09-23 11:00:25
The 17-year-old Israeli who died in a car crash during a missile alert today has been identified as Noam Yehiel, son of popular singer Erez Yehiel, Israel’s TPS news agency reported.
Noam was returning to his high school in Hadera after going to Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai’s grave in Meron. The site where the Roman-era mystic is buried is a popular site for selichot, special penitential prayers offered in the month leading up to Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year.
The car crashes near the Zarzir junction in the Israeli Valley as the sirens go off amid rocket fire from the Lebanese Shiite movement Hezbollah. Noam was pronounced dead at the scene by Israel’s Magen David Adom Emergency Medical Service.
Noam’s father, Erez Yehiel, was a Hasidic singer known for his songs based on verses from the Psalter.
A 20-year-old passenger was evacuated to Rambam Hospital in Haifa with moderate to serious injuries, and two other passengers were treated at the scene for minor injuries.
Yossi Fried, a volunteer from the emergency response organization ZAKA, said: “When we arrived at the scene, we saw a private car that had violently collided with the fence on the side of the road. Medical personnel (Magen David Adom) had to confirm the death of 17- year-old boy. ZAKA volunteers from the Northern District took care to honor the memory of the deceased and collect the finds for burial”.
Police believe sirens triggered by Hezbollah rocket fire distracted the driver and he lost control of his vehicle.
“We are at the scene of a very serious incident. We are investigating suspicions that the accident occurred during a siren that went off at 5:15 a.m.,” said police officer Yaron Ben Ishai.
According to Israel’s Interior Command, drivers who hear sirens should pull over to the side of the road and lie on the ground outside the vehicle.
Tensions between Israel and Hezbollah have risen in recent days.
On Monday, Israel’s military-political security cabinet updated its official military targets to include the safe return of 60,000 evacuees from the Northern Territories to their homes.
Pagers belonging to Hezbollah fighters exploded in Lebanon and Syria on Tuesday, injuring thousands. On Wednesday, a second wave of explosions injured more Hezbollah members. The Iran-backed militant group said 32 of its members were killed, a number that has not been confirmed by independent experts. Israeli officials believe that the death toll is higher than that stated by Hezbollah.
It has been widely claimed that the blasts were the work of Israel, but Jerusalem has not commented on this.
On Thursday, two Israeli soldiers were killed along the northern border in rocket attacks and drone strikes by the Lebanese group.
An Israeli airstrike killed 16 high-ranking terrorists in Beirut yesterday, eliminating most of the chain of command of the elite Radwan force.
Residents of northern Israel were forced to evacuate their homes when Hezbollah began firing rockets and drones in October. The terrorist group has fired more than 6,700 rockets and drones, killing 26 civilians and 22 soldiers on the Israeli side. Hezbollah leaders said they would continue the attacks to prevent Israelis from returning to their homes, which Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah reiterated in a speech on Thursday.
Israeli officials are calling for Hezbollah to be disarmed and removed from southern Lebanon in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which ended the 2006 Israel-Lebanese war.
Israel’s other three official military objectives are to eliminate the military and governance potential of the Palestinian militant group Hamas, return all hostages, and ensure that Gaza no longer poses a threat to Israel.
At least 1,200 people were killed and 252 Israelis and foreigners were taken hostage in Hamas attacks on Israeli communities near the Gaza border on October 7. More than 30 of the remaining 97 hostages have been declared dead. Since 2014 and 2015, Hamas has also held captive two Israeli civilians, as well as the bodies of two soldiers killed in 2014.