The IDF reservist critically injured Wednesday in a ramming attack on Route 443 is Neria Dov Leiter, around 30, a resident of Samaria and the son of Israel’s ambassador to the United States, Dr. Yechiel Leiter. Leiter was hit during a joint operational activity near the checkpoint close to Beit Horon and was taken to Shaare Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem unconscious, sedated, and intubated. For the Leiter family, this is another devastating tragedy—they lost their eldest son, Major Moshe Yedidya Leiter, at the start of the Iron Swords war.
2+The attack occurred in the afternoon on Route 443, near Beit Horon. A terrorist accelerated his vehicle and rammed forcefully into a police car in which a policewoman and a reservist soldier were operating as part of a joint forces deployment, running over Leiter. IDF forces at the scene responded with immediate fire and killed the terrorist. Medical teams provided lifesaving treatment on site and evacuated Leiter to Shaare Zedek suffering from a severe head injury, listed in critical condition.
Following the incident, the secretariat of the settlement of Eli issued an emotional notice to residents: “Neria Leiter, Chani’s son, was critically injured today in the ramming attack. We will all pray for his recovery and for the recovery of all the sick and wounded of the IDF and Israel—Neria Dov ben Chana. Good news.” The victim’s father, Dr. Yechiel Leiter, was appointed Israel’s ambassador to the United States, replacing Mike Herzog, and entered his position in Washington in January 2025.
2+Samaria Regional Council head Yossi Dagan addressed the attack and said: “We are praying together with all the residents of Samaria for the recovery of the wounded and strengthening his family in this difficult hour. The council will assist the victims’ system and the family, and together with the community we will embrace and help in any way we can. In the face of murderous terror, we must act with a strong hand and restore deterrence.”
Neria’s critical injury returns the family to the hell of bereavement from the Iron Swords war. His brother, Reserve Major Moshe Yedidya Leiter, fell on November 10, 2023, in battles in northern Gaza. Moshe previously served as a company commander in Shaldag, and in the war served as a company commander in Battalion 697 of the Fire Brigade. He was killed while checking a booby-trapped tunnel shaft near a mosque in the city of Beit Hanoun, and left behind a wife and six orphans, parents, and seven brothers and sisters, including Neria.
2+In the hours after the attack, Route 443 was closed to traffic in both directions between Maccabim checkpoint and Beit Horon, while security forces conduct searches and expand the investigation. In the settlement of Eli and throughout the country, the public is being called to storm the gates of heaven and pray for the complete recovery of the fighter Neria Dov ben Chana.