Two Israeli victims of New Orleans terror attack still hospitalized in US
Adi Levin, 23, sustained serious injuries to limbs, head, now facing long months of rehabilitation; was on road trip with fellow IDF reservist who was also badly hurt

Two Israelis who were injured in the New Orleans terror attack on New Year’s Day are still hospitalized in the city, as they recover from their injuries, the Ynet outlet reported.
Adi Levin, 23, and a fellow Israel Defense Forces reservist were on a road trip across the US when they were caught up in the attack that killed at least 15 and wounded another 30.
Having survived unscathed reserve duty in the ongoing Gaza War, as well as the conflict in Lebanon that ended in November with a ceasefire, they were wounded in the New Orleans attack.
Levin was seriously injured and is expected to remain in the hospital at least until April, before he can even be moved back to Israel for a long rehabilitation, his father Hagai told Ynet on Friday.
The other Israeli declined to be named in the report, amid fears that IDF soldiers could face war crimes charges abroad, or the possibility of anti-Israel activists trying to harm him at the hospital, the report said. He was identified only by the Hebrew initial “Yud.”
The road trip was supposed to be a break for the pair, after having completed two tours of duty in Gaza and a third in Lebanon, explained Levin’s father, Hagai.
Hagai said there was talk of a fourth round of reserve duty, prompting the pair to go ahead with Adi’s long-dreamed-of three-month road trip.
'His head and legs were crushed': Adi injured in New Orleans attack, still hospitalizedhttps://t.co/olIUg6LBQW
— Ynetnews (@ynetnews) January 10, 2025
The pair started in Nebraska at Hagai’s brother, and then headed to Los Angeles, and then on to Texas, before moving to New Orleans for Christmas and the New Year.
Florida was next on the itinerary, but the plan was ruined by the attack, in which a suspected terrorist carrying an Islamic State flag steered around a police blockade and rammed a pickup truck into a crowd before being shot to death by police.
Describing the moment of the attack, which he later reviewed in CCTV footage, Hagai said the terrorist’s car “hit Adi straight on, smashed his legs and his head, pressed him into the road, and pushed his friend to the side.”
Hours later “Yud” called Adi’s parents from the hospital to tell them what had happened, but at the time, he did not know where Adi was.
Adi was initially considered missing until activists from a local Chabad house found him at the hospital and identified him from his credit card. The rabbi contacted Adi’s family who then immediately flew to the US. They are staying at an apartment that the local Jewish community rented to them.
Of the two, Adi was more seriously injured.
He has difficulty concentrating and falls into deep sleep every few minutes, according to the report.
“His condition goes up and down, but I am optimistic,” Hagai explained speaking to the outlet from Adi’s hospital room. “I will bring my boy back home.”

Hagai conceded that Adi’s “life will change.” Due to his injuries, he will require metal pins in his arms and legs. Adi also currently has an open wound in his head, and part of his skull is missing.
“There are other injuries that we will fully understand only in another month when we begin the process of rehabilitating his head, but he will return to us.”
There have been signs of improvement. According to the report last Thursday, Adi opened his eyes and asked his father, “How did he do?”
It took Hagai, a few moments to realize that Adi, an avid fan of the NBA, was asking how Israeli Deni Avdija played in the recent match between Portland Trail Blazers and New Orleans Pelicans. Avdija plays for the Blazers.
Hagai said the two chatted for a while about the game.
“It was a nice morning talk, and then he again fell deeply asleep,” he recalled.

The extended stay is running up enormous bills, Hagai explained. The pair had travel insurance and local authorities have said they will also help out with the costs, though it is unclear what that will involve. Hagai expects that Adi will not be able to return to Israel before April and, by then, the fees will have run over a million dollars.
Once he does return home, Hagai said the family will move from their current home in the Golan Heights to Tel Aviv, in order to be closer to the Tel Hashomer rehabilitation hospital where Adi is expected to spend a good deal of time.
Yud is hospitalized in another part of the hospital. Also bed-bound, he is nonetheless well enough to call his family and friends in Israel.
“I very much miss them all and am full of thanks for the Jewish community here for their support, Yud told Ynet.
Aside from dealing with the injuries to their son, the Levin family ran into red tape: Adi’s passport and phone are missing, and the hotel where he was staying refused to hand over his belongings until the FBI became involved and explained the situation.
The Levin family is now seeking for Adi and Yud to be recognized as terror victims, which would enable state funding for their treatment and return to Israel.
Hagai said that, as he understands the regulations, Israelis injured in terror attacks abroad are also supposed to be considered state-recognized victims of terror.
“The country knows how to embrace its sons as needed, especially these boys who gave four years of their lives, and that is what I expect,” Hagai said.
The war in Gaza started on October 7, 2023, when the Hamas terror group led thousands of terrorists in a devastating attack that killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, taking 251 hostage to Gaza. The next day, Iran-backed Hezbollah began attacking from Lebanon in fighting that spiraled into an all-out war that ended with the November truce.