Taylor Force, an American student, was the latest victim of the near-daily Palestinian terrorist attacks in Israel.
Taylor Force, a 28-year-old MBA student, was stabbed and murdered Tuesday night by a Palestinian terrorist on Tel Aviv’s boardwalk. The terrorist, who was shot dead by security forces, stabbed and wounded another 13 Israelis.
Force, a West Point graduate who served tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan was a student a Vanderbilt University.
Force was murdered during a school-sponsored trip to learn about startup companies overseas, an area in which Israel excels.
Vanderbilt Chancellor Nicholas Zeppos, in a letter notifying students, faculty and staff, called the incident a “horrific act of violence.”
Force graduated from the US Military Academy at West Point and served in the Army from 2009 to 2014, according to his LinkedIn page. He had been based at Fort Hood, Texas, as a platoon leader and fire support officer, among other duties.
Israeli security and medics at the scene of terror at Jaffa Port, Tel Aviv, on Tuesday evening. (Tomer Neuberg/Flash90)
Stuart Force, Taylor’s father, spoke briefly with The Associated Press by phone.
“He was a great kid,” he said before he received a call from family and ended the conversation.
Force went to high school at New Mexico Military Institute and was an Eagle Scout, according to the LinkedIn page. At West Point, Force was a member of the ski team and received a bachelor’s degree in engineering and industrial management.
Zeppos said in his letter that the other 28 students and four Vanderbilt staffers on the trip were safe. The university is arranging for their return to the United States.
“This horrific act of violence has robbed our Vanderbilt family of a young hopeful life and all of the bright promise that he held for bettering our greater world,” Zeppos wrote.
He said university resources are being made available for students, faculty and staff who may seek counseling.
Force was killed during one of four Palestinian terrorist attacks on Tuesday which occurred in Jerusalem, Petah Tikvah and Tel Aviv, and left dozens of Israelis wounded.
These incidents were the latest in a long series of almost daily Palestinian terror attacks, which have plagued Israelis over the course of the past six months, claiming the lives of 33 victims and wounding some 400.
By: AP and United with Israel Staff