The scene of a stabbing attack in Tel Aviv, January 21, 2025. Photo by Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90
Four Israelis suffered stab wounds when a Moroccan man attacked them with a knife on a Tel Aviv street on Tuesday evening. IDF commando soldiers on leave, who by chance were nearby, quickly shot and killed the attacker, Israeli media reported.
Two men were in moderate condition, and two others in good condition after the attack, the Magen David Adom rescue service said.
The attack was identified as 29-year-old Moroccan citizen Abdelaziz Kaddi, a U.S. green card holder, who entered Israel on Jan. 18 with a tourist visa.
Upon arrival in Israel, Kaddi was flagged by airport security and was questioned by representatives of the Shin Bet, who decided to approve his entry to the country.
“Arrived on a connection flight from Poland. Single without family, no friends. No hotel address. There were all the suspicious signs,” wrote i24 legal affairs correspondent Avishai Greenzeig.
Despite the warning signs, Kaddi wasn’t immediately turned back, but “He was transferred to a security questioning because he has an American green card,” Greenzeig explained.
Interior Minister Moshe Arbel expressed his appreciation for the security personnel at the airport but called on Ronen Bar, director of the domestic intelligence service Shin Bet, to investigate the incident.
“I praise and appreciate the border inspectors of the Population and Immigration Authority who, in real time, identified and sought to prevent the terrorist from the attack in Tel Aviv from entering Israel upon his arrival at Ben Gurion Airport on Jan. 18 and handed him over for questioning by the security officials, who unfortunately decided to allow his entry to Israel.”
“I call on the head of the Shin Bet Ronen Bar to investigate the serious incident and draw lessons from it as soon as possible,” Arbel added.
The Shin Bet later stated that Kaddi “was subjected to a security assessment that included his interrogation as well as additional tests, at the end of which it was decided that there was no data to establish a reason to prevent his entry into Israel for security reasons. The case will be investigated.”
Kaddi was later found to have published and shared Islamist and anti-Israeli material on his social media pages, including pictures praising terrorists who were killed by Israeli security forces in Judea and Samaria.
According to Kan News, an IDF officer who lost a hand in combat in Gaza was on the scene of the attack and tried to stop the attacker.
Capt. A. told the news outlet: “I fought in Gaza about a year ago and was injured and lost my right hand. Today I am in the tactical command college, in the company commanders’ course.”
“I went out with my friends from the course to [the Tel Aviv neighborhood of] Nahalat Binyamin, and during the recreation a thug came and tried to stab one of us. As soon as I noticed the incident, I tried to hit the terrorist and we chased after him. I was injured and am being treated for a minor hand injury, and I expect to return to the company commanders’ course and continue as usual.”
Morocco and Israel have enjoyed good relations for years and signed peace agreements as part of the Abraham Accords in 2020. Since then, many Israelis, particularly those with Moroccan roots, have traveled to the North African country.
Faisal Marjani, a Moroccan citizen and the president and founder of the “Moroccan Coexistence Association” condemned the attack: “The Moroccan Coexistence Association condemns the cowardly terrorist act that harmed innocent citizens in Israel and confirms its firm position rejecting any form of violence and terrorism,” he told Ynet News.
“This despicable act reflects the escalation of the inciting and hateful words carried by a number of media outlets, led by Al-Jazeera, which continues to broadcast misleading information and spreads hatred against Jews and Israelis,” Marjani added.
