Tel Aviv Stabbing Spree Sparks Debate Over U.S. Visa Waiver Program

Tuesday evening three people were wounded in Tel Aviv during stabbing attacks at two locations on Nahalat Binyamin and Kalisher streets. A 24-year-old man and a 59-year-old man were injured, with one in light condition. But who did it? That is the wild part. 

Kaddi Abdelaziz, a Moroccan-born man with permanent U.S. residency carried out the attack. He entered Israel on January 18, 2025 and very casually picked up some pizza before going on to wield a knife and stab people. 

What he did not know is that Israelis… instead of running away from the attacker…often run toward. That was caught on surveillance. He was then killed by a female border officer who was nearby off duty but had her pistol. He obtained U.S. permanent residency in 2022 and entered Israel through Ben Gurion Airport totally normally. 

The issue here is that this is the first attack due to, essentially, the US visa waiver program, which allows US citizens to enter into Israel with equal opportunity. The US visa waiver program needed this to be even and equal across the board without, lets say, profiling certain individuals. Israeli officials were against the stipulation for a long time, due to fears of terrorists infiltrating the country by air. 

His ID and entry permit were illegally photographed and shared following the attack. One of the victims is in moderate to serious condition with a neck wound and was put through into surgery. Two others were being treated in the trauma room – one in light to moderate condition and one in light condition.