3-year-old boy visiting from US killed by bus in West Bank settlement

Child reportedly from New York bolted into street in Beitar Illit before being hit; driver detained

A 3-year-old boy, reportedly a tourist from the US, was killed when he was hit by a bus in the West Bank settlement of Beitar Illit on Monday.

After attempts to revive him, medics pronounced the child dead at the scene.

According to a preliminary investigation by police, the boy was holding his mother’s hand on the sidewalk before he bolted suddenly into the street, where he was fatally struck by the bus.

The bus driver was detained for questioning.

Three-year-old run over by bus in front of family: Baruch Eisenberg, who arrived with family from NY for Passover visit, hit by bus on after suddenly descending from sidewalk to road. https://t.co/JgCeqZ0w0K ArutzSheva pic.twitter.com/ysPRzN394X

— Jewish Community (@JComm_NewsFeeds) April 22, 2019

According to the Kikar Hashabbat news website, the child’s family was from the US and they were in Israel for the Passover holiday. They had been visiting relatives in the settlement, south of Jerusalem.

The Ynet news website identified the boy as Baruch Eisenberg from New York. The family had planned a haircut ceremony for Eisenberg, which is traditionally held when a boy turns three, during their trip to Israel, the report said.

He was to be buried in Jerusalem’s Givat Shaul cemetery on Monday night and is survived by his parents and four sisters, according to Ynet.

Also Monday, police in Jerusalem continued a manhunt for the driver in a suspected hit-and-run on Sunday night, as the condition of an 11-year-old boy who was struck by the car continued to be critical.

Police on Monday morning said they knew the identity of the suspected driver, a man in his 20s, who had borrowed the car.

The car was located Sunday night near the settlement of Givat Ze’ev, adjacent to the capital, but the driver’s whereabouts remain unknown.