Driver Suspected in Fatal Hadera Hit-and-Run Claims Self-Defense

The driver suspected of fatally striking 17-year-old Amichai Attia in Hadera during a Selichot prayer event claims he was attacked by a large crowd and feared for his life. In a conversation with N12 from his hospital bed, where he is being treated for a gunshot wound to the hand, the driver stated he was surrounded by 40 to 50 people and was trying to escape when his vehicle likely hit Attia. "I didn't intend to run anyone over, I'm not a terrorist, I just wanted to get out of there alive," he asserted.

The driver explained that he continued to flee even after being shot by a member of a civilian security team who responded to the scene, fearing he would be killed if he stopped. "If I had stopped, they would have killed me," he told N12. He is currently hospitalized and being questioned by police on suspicion of hit-and-run, reckless driving, and endangering human life.

The incident occurred around 1:40 AM in the parking lot of a commercial center where many young people had gathered for Selichot prayers. Initial investigations suggest a confrontation escalated between the driver and a group of youths. Security footage reportedly shows the driver's commercial vehicle attempting to flee while being pursued by a crowd, and hitting Attia during a turn within the parking lot.

Witnesses, suspecting a nationalistic terror attack, alerted the local security team, leading to the shooting. The driver was apprehended shortly after by police. Amichai Attia, a resident of the settlement of Itamar and a student, was evacuated to Hillel Yaffe Medical Center with severe head injuries and was later pronounced dead. Attia was remembered by his community and yeshiva as a beloved youth leader.