Four-Year-Old Girl Dies From Injuries in Highway 6 Accident Near Kiryat Gat

Arbel Uriya Hoffman, a four-year-old girl from the Moshav Tekuma, died on Wednesday from severe injuries sustained in a car accident last Friday on Highway 6 near Kiryat Gat. Medical teams had fought to save her life since the crash, but she succumbed to her wounds. Her parents, Yaakov and Hila-Uriya Hoffman, announced their decision to donate her organs to save others. The Moshav Tekuma community expressed mourning, with Arbel's mother describing her as "our light has gone out" and asking for comfort and strength.

The tragic death of Arbel follows another fatal incident the previous day involving a five-year-old girl hit by a vehicle on Shmuel Salant Street in Jerusalem, who was pronounced dead after emergency treatment. Additionally, a pregnant woman died in a two-vehicle collision near Ashdod port; doctors performed an emergency cesarean to save the premature baby, who remains in critical condition. Four others sustained minor injuries in that crash.

Since the start of 2026, 28 children have died in road accidents, accounting for 12% of all fatalities. Overall, 232 people have died on Israeli roads this year, marking a 6% decrease compared to the same period in 2025. Yaniv Yaakov, CEO of the Or Yarok organization, urged the Ministry of Transportation to implement targeted measures to reduce child fatalities, emphasizing the need to control vehicle speeds in areas with high child pedestrian presence.