Eight-car pileup on Route 6 near Iron interchange leaves 18 lightly hurt

Eighteen people were lightly injured when eight vehicles collided on northbound Route 6 near the Iron interchange, according to Israeli emergency services and media. Magen David Adom (MDA), Israel's national emergency medical service, said its Gilboa region dispatch received a call at 09:42 about a crash involving several vehicles close to the interchange.

MDA said its medics and paramedics were treating the injured and taking 10 of them, all in light condition, to Hillel Yaffe hospital, and that a further 8 people with light injuries were also evacuated from the scene. The crash disrupted northbound traffic on the highway, and several outlets reported heavy congestion in the area.

Where the crash happened

Route 6, also called the Cross-Israel Highway, is the country's main north-south toll road. The Times of Israel placed the collision in the Lower Galilee, on the section of road that links the Iron junction with the Ein Tut junction, and said it briefly stopped northbound traffic at a time when roads were already busy with holiday travel. N12 also located the crash on the northbound side, between the Ein Tut and Iron interchanges.

An interchange on Route 6 is a grade-separated junction where the tollway connects with other roads. Both the MDA statement and the Hebrew-language reports used the Iron interchange as the reference point for the location.

What the emergency services and police said

MDA, whose 101 emergency number is the Israeli equivalent of an ambulance hotline, gave the most detailed account of casualties. It described all of those hurt as being in light condition and did not report any serious or moderate injuries. The Times of Israel attributed the figure of 18 lightly wounded to the police, and said first responders were treating people at the scene.

The Jerusalem Post put the number of injured at approximately 18, with a headline saying at least eighteen people were hurt. The newspaper published a police photograph showing officers at the scene of the crash on Highway 6, dated September 29, 2026.

Road closures and traffic

Accounts of the road's status differ, and the reports were published at different times. N12 said the road was closed to traffic at the time of its report, with heavy congestion. Ynet reported that one northbound lane remained shut and that traffic in the area was heavy. The Times of Israel said police had closed the highway after the crash and later reopened two of its three lanes. A post from Army Radio embedded in the Times of Israel report also said the road had been blocked.

How the casualty figures compare

All five organisations agree on the core facts: 18 people hurt, and light injuries only. They differ on how many people went to hospital. Ynet said 10 were taken for hospital treatment. MDA's statement said 10 were being taken to Hillel Yaffe and that 8 more were evacuated as well, without saying where those 8 were taken. The Jerusalem Post's figure of approximately 18 and its headline of at least eighteen leave open whether the count could change.

MDA's own wording referred to a crash between several vehicles rather than giving a specific number, as did N12. The figure of eight vehicles comes from Ynet, its alerts channel, The Times of Israel and The Jerusalem Post.

What the reports do not say

None of the reports explains what caused the collision, or whether one vehicle set off the chain of impacts. None says whether police have opened an investigation, whether any driver has been questioned, or what types of vehicles were involved. The reports do not identify any of the injured or give their ages.

It is also unclear from the material how long the road was fully closed, when all lanes were expected to reopen, and to which facility the additional 8 people evacuated by MDA were taken. The reports do not say whether any of those hurt were later discharged.