▲ A flydubai aircraft
Posts related to Islamic extremist terrorist organizations, including al-Qaeda, were found on the social media account of the copilot who attempted a terror attack on a flydubai passenger plane bound for Israel, CNN reported on the 3rd (local time).
According to the report, posts praising terrorist groups appeared consecutively on the LinkedIn and Instagram accounts of the suspect, 29-year-old Omani copilot Hamam Al-Hammami, approximately nine hours after the incident occurred.
The video in question included footage of Israeli El Al aircraft at Dubai International Airport filmed from the cockpit in October 2023, along with a photograph of Ayman al-Zawahiri, the former leader of al-Qaeda and successor to Osama bin Laden.
Additionally, a photo was posted of Humam Khalil Abu-Mulal al-Balawi, an al-Qaeda-linked terrorist who killed nine people, including CIA operatives, in a 2009 suicide bombing in Afghanistan.
Al-Qaeda is a Sunni Islamist extremist terrorist organization founded with Osama bin Laden as its leader, which carried out the September 11 terrorist attacks targeting the US mainland in 2001.
The final part of the video contained an AI-generated image of one of Islam's three holiest sites, accompanied by a voiceover stating, "We will uphold our dignity without fearing death."
It has not been confirmed whether these posts were uploaded directly by Al-Hammami himself, if they were scheduled posts, or if someone else uploaded them on his behalf.
An analysis by CNN using an AI search model of nearly 3,000 tweets previously written and deleted by Al-Hammami also revealed persistent trends of religious extremism and misogyny.
Al-Hammami also discussed the difficulties he faced in finding a prospective bride who would accept his conditions, which included wearing a niqab (a face veil) and stopping social activities after marriage.
In addition, he criticized mixed-gender workplaces, claiming that such environments lead to the moral corruption of women.
Earlier, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) prosecution investigating the case officially announced that Al-Hammami had committed an act of terror by attacking the captain with an emergency cockpit axe and attempting to seize control of the aircraft.
The incident occurred on September 30 aboard a flydubai flight departing from Dubai, UAE, and heading to Tel Aviv, Israel.
The captain, an Indian national, was seriously injured by the weapon wielded by Al-Hammami but managed to unlock the cockpit door, allowing three Israeli passengers and a crew member to enter the cockpit and subdue Al-Hammami.
About 180 people were on board the accident aircraft, a significant portion of whom were Israeli.
Passengers were gripped by terror as the plane plunged rapidly due to Al-Hammami's rampage.
Al-Hammami reportedly told UAE investigators that he intended to take control of the aircraft's flight controls and crash the plane in Israel.
It was learned that Al-Hammami was born in the UAE to an Omani father and a Syrian mother.
Al-Hammami's LinkedIn page states that he studied at Buckinghamshire New University in the United Kingdom.
The university confirmed to CNN that a man with that name completed a three-year distance learning program and earned a degree in aviation management in 2023.
Al-Hammami is known to have worked for Oman Air for about seven years.
He was removed from flight duties and transferred to other roles last year due to concerns over extremist views.
He subsequently worked for the Moroccan national carrier Royal Air Maroc before joining flydubai this year, according to CNN.
The incident has raised pointed criticisms that there are serious loopholes in Israel's aviation security system.
This is because no prior vetting was conducted even though a pilot of Omani nationality, which does not officially recognize Israel as a state, was assigned to operate a flight to Israel.
A spokesperson for the Israeli Ministry of Transportation acknowledged in a briefing that "the ministry's security regulations do not include items to verify terrorist threats from foreign airline pilots."
(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)
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