Israel flight hijacking latest: FlyDubai co-pilot who used crash axe in ‘terror incident’ studied at UK university

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Hamam al-Hammami, identified as the co-pilot who attacked a flight captain on a flight to Tel Aviv, studied at a UK university prior to the attack, it has emerged.

A spokesperson for Buckinghamshire New University told The Independent: “Our thoughts are with the injured pilot, crew and passengers involved in this incident.

“Hamam al Hammami previously completed a distance-learning course in aviation management. He did not undertake any pilot training at the University.”

The UAE’s prosecutor general said he intended to carry out a “terror attack” and that the man, who was identified on Saturday as Omani national al-Hammami, used a crash axe to stab the captain.

Investigations are ongoing to determine the circumstances of the incident, the motives and any related connections, as well as to examine physical and digital evidence, he added.

Hammami was born in the UAE to an Omani father and Syrian mother, CNN quoted sources and Israeli officials familiar with the matter as saying.

He was banned from flying last year over concerns that he had radical ideological views, according to Saudi state media.

FlyDubai has said that the incident is still under investigation.

The UAE Attorney General, Counsellor Hamad Saif Al Shamsi, has confirmed that Emirati authorities are conducting an ongoing investigation to establish the motive behind the mid-air attack.

According to state media outlet WAM, specialised investigators are now analysing physical and digital evidence to determine the co-pilot's motives and identify any potential ties to external extremist organisations.

The news comes after earlier confirmation that the hijacking is being treated as a ‘terror’ attack by UAE authorities.

The co-pilot suspected of stabbing the captain of an Israel-bound FlyDubai flight was an Omani national named Hamam al-Hammami, according to reports.

He was banned from flying last year over concerns that he had radical ideological views, according to Saudi state media.

The attacker was born in the United Arab Emirates to an Omani father and Syrian mother, CNN reported.

The FlyDubai co-pilot who stabbed his captain had previously been banned from flying over concerns he had radical ideological views, it has been reported.

Though the pilot- an Omani national - was banned by his country, he was still hired by FlyDubai, according to the Wall Street Journal.

However, the nature of his radicalisation has not been shared.

CNN reported that the pilot had been removed from a previous job at Oman’s national airline last year following concerns about his extremist views.

Israel has some of the world’s most stringent air travel security measures.

The United Arab Emirates proudly adheres to international aviation safety standards. Yet those safeguards failed to prevent a flight between the countries from taking a dangerous plunge during an alleged attack in the cockpit.

The copilot allegedly stabbed the captain in the cockpit before passengers intervened aboard FlyDubai Flight FZ1073 after taking off from Dubai, UAE, with 174 people flying to Tel Aviv, Israel, on Wednesday.

“Until this event, the possibility of a threat originating from a pilot or crew member was not considered a likely scenario. Security efforts have traditionally focused much more heavily on passengers and their luggage,” says Eyal Hulata, Israel’s former national security adviser.

“That will probably change now and crew members will be subject to heavier screening.”

When the first reports about a diverted flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv came through on Wednesday, it appeared to have been caused by a tussle between two pilots.

Early claims even suggested one was Russian and the other Ukrainian.

But, in the age of social media, the true chaos aboard the FlyDubai Flight FZ1073 quickly came to light. Footage and images sent from the plane by blood-covered passengers showed them overpowering the co-pilot, who it later emerged was an Omani national.

The motives for an alleged hijacker to try and plunge a plane bound for Israel are vivid - and they are opaque.

But whether the attempt on Flight FZ1073 was in revenge for the thousands killed by Israel’s forces in Gaza or the consequences of a psychotic breakdown, only one person benefits. Benjamin Netanyahu.

Israel’s longest-serving prime minister had just taken a similar flight path from the UAE to Israel as the ill-fated FlyDubai passengers.

He had been in Abu Dhabi, Israeli media has reported, because he was trying to get the president of the Emirates, Mohamed bin Zayed Al ​Nahyan, to say publicly that he had not warned Netanyahu about the October 7 2023 Hamas-led massacres.

Buckinghamshire New University had its license to sponsor international students suspended with immediate effect on Wednesday, according to reports in the BBC.

It said that the suspension was due to “many of the issues raised by the Home Office relate to historic international student recruitment activity”.

It has 20 days to respond to the revocation and existing international students may continue to study there in the interim.

Hamam al-Hammami, a co-pilot who attacked a flight captain on a flight to Tel Aviv, completed a course at Buckinghamshire New University it has emerged.

A spokesperson for Buckinghamshire New University told The Independent: “Our thoughts are with the injured pilot, crew and passengers involved in this incident.

“Hamam al Hammami previously completed a distance-learning course in aviation management. He did not undertake any pilot training at the University.”

Green Party leader Zack Polanski has said that Israel has “definitely” conducted false flag operations in the past.

“What I find really difficult to navigate is anti-Semitism on the Left,” he said in an episode of the Bold Politics podcast.

“Because, again, I want to be really clear: there are definitely examples of where the Israeli government [has] used false flags.”

It comes amid a row about anti-semitism in the party.