What happened
A Flydubai flight bound for Tel Aviv was involved in a hijacking attempt on Wednesday. The suspect, identified as Omani citizen Hamam al-Hammami, allegedly attacked his fellow pilot and tried to crash the plane. Al-Hammami, who was born in the United Arab Emirates to an Omani father and Syrian mother, had previously been removed from flight duties at Oman's national airline due to concerns about his radical ideological views.
Despite this, Flydubai hired al-Hammami, allowing him to fly the route between the United Arab Emirates and Israel. The incident has raised concerns about potential security failures, with aviation-security analysts stating that a motivated assailant should have been stopped before reaching the airport.
Al-Hammami's social media profiles, which have since been deleted, reportedly showed him to be deeply religious and misogynistic. He had also complained about struggling to find a bride who would wear a niqab and give up her job once they were married.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has stated that the attacker underwent Islamist radicalization and came to crash the plane with its passengers on board. An investigation is currently underway to determine whether al-Hammami was sent by anyone and to identify those responsible.
