An unidentified man threw rocks from an overpass onto vehicles traveling north on Tel Aviv's Ayalon Highway on Sunday morning, damaging several cars near the Halakha Interchange. Footage captured by one of the vehicles reportedly shows the suspect dumping rocks onto the roadway before fleeing toward Ramat Gan. Police have opened an investigation.
Edward Rees, whose Tesla was struck during the incident, described the frightening moments in an interview with ynet. "I was driving north in the left lane, minding my own business. As I approached the bridge, I suddenly saw stones flying, actual rocks, toward my lane and the lane next to me. We were traveling at 80 to 90 km/h, and I didn't have time to react. I heard the rocks hitting my car. Luckily, I got off lightly."
Man hurls rocks at cars from bridge over Tel Aviv's Ayalon Highway, then flees
According to Rees, a taxi traveling alongside him appeared to have taken the brunt of the rocks. "My car suffered some paint damage and a few marks on the windshield, but it didn't break. The taxi next to me probably took most of the rocks."
Rees said he initially did not realize the incident was deliberate and assumed the stones might have come from construction work nearby. Because there was nowhere to pull over safely, he continued driving and decided to examine the footage from his vehicle's cameras once he reached his destination.
"At first, I thought maybe there was construction work going on. There was nowhere for me to stop, so I told myself that since I have a Tesla with cameras, I'd check afterward to see exactly what had happened," he recalled.
"A few minutes later, when I parked, I looked at the footage and saw someone simply standing on the bridge, emptying a bag or bucket of rocks onto the traffic. As soon as he finished, you could see him start running toward Ramat Gan."
Only after reviewing the recording did Rees fully appreciate how dangerous the incident had been. "From the noise, I was certain the rocks had hit my windshield. When you see that many rocks, you think they could actually penetrate the car. Apparently, I was lucky in terms of my position and timing."
Rees filed a police complaint and plans to retrieve higher-resolution recordings from his vehicle's cameras, hoping they might reveal details that could help identify the taxi involved.
Police from the Lev Tel Aviv precinct have launched an investigation into the incident. The identity of the suspect and his motive remain unknown.
Rees expressed concern that the person responsible might attempt something similar again, potentially with fatal consequences.
"My fear is that this might have been a nationalist-motivated incident, or simply someone who could come back and do it again. Next time, it could kill someone," he said. "At 90 km/h, if your windshield suddenly shatters or a rock hits someone in the head, it could end in disaster."
He added that the experience had shaken his sense of security while driving on one of Israel's busiest highways.
"It's frightening. I'm a little afraid to drive on Ayalon now. I stressed to the police investigator who took my statement just how serious this is. Someone stood on a bridge and threw rocks at moving cars. This time, we were lucky, but next time it could end very differently."