Israeli interior minister: Shin Bet overturned decision to deny Tel Aviv terrorist entry

The terrorist was transferred for questioning to security officials, who allowed him to enter Israel.

By JNS Staff

The foreign national who wounded four people in a terrorist stabbing spree in Tel Aviv was initially denied entry to Israel, but security officials overruled that decision, Interior Minister Moshe Arbel said on Tuesday.

“I commend and appreciate the border inspectors of the Population and Immigration Authority, who recognized [the threat] and had sought to prevent the entry into Israel of the terrorist of the Tel Aviv attack in real time upon his arrival at Ben-Gurion Airport on Jan. 18,” stated Arbel.

According to Arbel, the terrorist was “transferred for questioning to security officials, who unfortunately allowed him to enter Israel.”

He urged Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) chief Ronen Bar “to probe this serious incident and draw lessons from it as soon as possible.”

The Israel Security Agency subsequently issued a statement confirming that it was investigating, noting that the assailant “underwent a security assessment that included interrogations as well as additional checks, at the end of which it was decided that there was no data that would establish grounds to prevent his entry into Israel for security reasons.”

The attacker, a 29-year-old man identified via an ID card found on his person, was reportedly a U.S. permanent resident born in Morocco. He was shot and killed at the scene by Israeli security personnel in the area.

Israel’s Channel 12 reported that the terrorist was in the United States on a DV-1 visa, suggesting that he obtained a Green Card in the Diversity Visa Program that U.S. President Donald Trump has attempted to end.

Israel’s Ynet news outlet said the terrorist, identified as Kaddi Abdelaziz, had shared anti-Israel content on Facebook. In one post, he reportedly accused the Jewish state of starving civilians in northern Gaza, claiming that half a million Palestinians were “at risk of dying from hunger.”

Abdelaziz also shared a video praising Islam accompanied by the slogan “Free Palestine,” as well as a photo of slain terrorist Ibrahim al-Nabulsi.

Following the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas-led massacre, Abdelaziz was said to have shared a post referring to the terror attack as a potential reason for “doubling the number of martyrs for Islam.” His Facebook profile was deleted shortly after his identity was first published in the media.

The U.S. State Department told Ynet on Tuesday night that it was “aware of the reports” that a Green Card holder was involved, and conveyed “its deepest condolences to the victims and the families of all those injured.”

A spokesperson for the Immigration and Population Authority told JNS on Wednesday that the terrorist did not enter Israel through the U.S. Visa Waiver Program, but applied for a visa using his non-U.S. passport.

Israel was admitted to the Visa Waiver Program in 2023, making it the first Middle Eastern nation with reciprocal, visa-free travel to America.

Jerusalem had sought acceptance into the Visa Waiver Program for decades. One of the issues holding up its admittance had been the requirement that Israeli authorities treat all U.S. citizens equally, including Palestinian Arabs who hold American citizenship.

ImmigrationShin Betterrorist stabbing attack