Fifth-grader killed by police vehicle in Tekoa accident

A fifth-grader was killed Tuesday night when he was hit by a police vehicle while riding his bicycle at the entrance to the West Bank settlement of Tekoa.

The boy was later named as Chen Bloch, who lived in the settlement.

Paramedics declared the boy dead at the scene, the Magen David Adom emergency service said.

Eyewitnesses said that Bloch was hit by an armored police jeep.

“At 7:15 p.m. MDA got a call about a boy riding his bicycle who was hit by a car near to the entrance of a settlement in the Etzion Bloc area,” MDA said in a statement, referring to the bloc of settlements south of Jerusalem that includes Tekoa.

“When I arrived at the scene, I saw a boy of about 7 lying under a car, and a bicycle nearby,” said MDA paramedic Elad Benstein, who attended the accident. “There were no signs of life, and we were forced to declare him dead at the scene.”

The death shocked the small community of some 3,500 residents, which cancelled a social event planned for later in the evening.

Police said they opened an investigation into the incident.

“This is a tragic incident that ended in loss of a life,” the police said in a statement. “The Israel Police offers its condolences to the family.”