Suspect in FlyDubai incident was previously identified as security risk


The co-pilot of the FlyDubai plane who allegedly attacked the plane’s captain and attempted to crash a flight bound for Israel on Wednesday is an Omani national who was previously suspended from flying by Oman Air after being identified as a security risk, according to senior intelligence and law enforcement officials.

Multiple sources familiar with the investigation identified the suspected attacker as 29-year-old Hamam Al Hammami.

The officials told ABC News that Al Hammami, while working as a co-pilot trainee for Oman Air in 2024, was found to be in possession of extremist materials. The suspect was allowed to continue working for the airline in an administrative role, the sources said.

Read more…
Source: ABC News


Sign up for the Counter-IED Report Newsletters
The latest news and insights delivered right to your inbox


Related:

  • Pakistan: Gas pipeline to Punjab blown up in Lakki Marwat

    July 16, 2025

    A gas pipeline supplying natural gas to Punjab was blown up in the Wanda Ameer area of Lakki Marwat district during the early hours of Wednesday. The explosion, which occurred under the cover of darkness, was reportedly carried out by unidentified individuals. Residents said the blast was loud enough to be heard several kilometres away. Soon ...

  • Kenya: Three KDF soldiers killed, seven injured in Lamu IED blast

    July 16, 2025

    At least three Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) soldiers were killed on Tuesday, July 15, while seven others sustained injuries after their vehicle ran over an improvised explosive device (IED) at Badaah area on the Kiunga-Sankuri road in Lamu County. Lamu East Deputy County Commissioner (DCC) George Kubai confirmed the incident, saying the soldiers were returning to ...

  • UN Syria Commission deeply alarmed by Suwayda violence, urges de-escalation, civilian protection and respect for human rights

    July 15, 2025

    GENEVA – The most recent violence in Suwayda governorate in southern Syria has reportedly resulted in the deaths of dozens, including women and children, and the injury of more than one hundred others, with clashes reportedly ongoing. A conflict between Bedouin tribal forces and local armed groups drawn from the Druze community has escalated significantly in ...

  • Iraq: Drone attack halts oil output at Sarsang field in Duhok Governorate

    July 15, 2025

    A drone attack halted production at the Sarsang oilfield in Iraq’s Kurdistan region on Tuesday only hours before its U.S. operator signed a deal to develop another field. The Sarsang field is operated by HKN Energy, a privately held U.S. oil and gas company active in Iraq’s Kurdistan region and owned by Hillwood Energy, part of ...

  • Somalia: Al-Shabaab fighters seize central Somali town, displacing thousands

    July 14, 2025

    Al-Shabab insurgents have seized the town of Tardo in Somalia’s central Hiiran region, according to a military official. Tardo is a key crossroads between larger urban centres. The town fell on Sunday after Al-Shabab combatants drove out government-allied clan fighters, Major Mohamed Abdullahi told Reuters. Somali lawmaker Dahir Amin said at least 12,500 families have fled ...

  • Colombia: Bomb-sniffing dog loses leg in explosion, hailed as hero for saving dozens of lives

    July 14, 2025

    A military dog is being hailed as a hero in Colombia after detecting a bomb planted by guerrilla fighters that exploded during a military operation, authorities said, adding that the wounded canine’s actions saved the lives of dozens of soldiers and civilians. The incident was announced just two days after a bomb strapped to a donkey ...

  • Syria: Fierce clashes in Suwayda leave 89 dead

    July 14, 2025

    At least 89 people have been killed and hundreds wounded in violent clashes erupting in Syria’s Suwayda province, with the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) warning of a “risk of a new massacre” as government security forces are reportedly siding with Bedouin tribes against the local Druze population. Rami Abdulrahman, the director of the Syrian ...

  • Kenya: Two dead in Garissa after IED blast along Ijara–Bodhai Road

    July 14, 2025

    Two people died on Sunday night after their vehicle hit an improvised explosive device (IED) suspected to have been planted by Al-Shabaab militants along a road linking Ijara town to Bodhai sub-county in Garissa County. Bodhai Deputy County Commissioner Dubat Mohamed, who confirmed the incident, said the victims were traveling on a Probox vehicle, registration number ...

  • Colombia: Bomb attack suspends pumping on Cano Limon-Covenas pipeline

    July 14, 2025

    Colombia’s Cano Limon-Covenas Oil Pipeline was bombed by unknown actors, operator Cenit said on Sunday, prompting the suspension of pumping between oil fields in the country’s northeast and the Caribbean coast, where the oil is exported. The attack occurred in a rural area of Saravena, in the region of Arauca, according to Cenit, a subsidiary of ...

  • India: Three injured as IED planted by Maoists explodes in Chhattisgarh’s Bijapur

    July 14, 2025

    The incident took place on Sunday (July 13, 2025) evening when the three persons, residents of Dhangol village under Madded police station limits, had gone to a nearby forest to collect mushrooms, a police official said. They inadvertently came in contact with the pressure IED, which exploded causing injuries to their legs and faces, the official ...

  • ISWAP’s emergence as epicentre of the Islamic State’s jihadism

    July 12, 2025

    A new infographic released by ISIS’s Amaq Agency over the weekend paints a revealing picture of the group’s global operations during the first half of the year. The data, drawn from across ISIS’s various wilayat (provinces), confirms a trend that has been developing over the past few years: the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) has ...

  • Colombia: Military operation leads to the neutralization of improvised explosive devices

    July 11, 2025

    Within the framework of focused military operations and as part of the work of the sustained military operation to increase the security and institutional control of the territory, troops of the Rapid Deployment Force No. 6 of the Sixth Division of Colombian National Army, through a tactical maneuver executed by troops of the Rapid Deployment ...

  • Pakistan: Armed men kidnap and kill nine passengers in Balochistan

    July 11, 2025

    At least nine passengers travelling on two Punjab-bound coaches were abducted and killed by unidentified armed men in Sur-Dakai area, on the border between Balochistan’s Zhob and Loralai districts, on Thursday night. “Nine people abducted from both coaches have been killed, and their bodies have been recovered,” said Zhob Assistant Comm­issioner Naveed Alam, adding that the ...

  • Colombian Soldier Dies After Guerrilla Fighters Set Off Bomb Strapped To a Donkey

    July 10, 2025

    A Colombian soldier died and two others were wounded on Wednesday after guerrilla members set off a bomb strapped to a donkey, local officials said. The attack took place in Valdivia, in the department of Antioquia, and was attributed to the Ejercito de Liberacion Nacional (ELN). Antioquia governor Andres Julian Rendon reacted to the episode, criticizing the government ...

  • Yemen: 10 rescued, 3 killed and others ‘kidnapped’ after Houthis sink ship in second Red Sea attack in a week

    July 10, 2025

    Ten people have been rescued from the Red Sea after their ship sank near Yemen following an attack by the Houthis, according to the European Union’s maritime security mission, with several others believed to be being held by the rebel group. The Houthis said they had taken some of those on board to an undisclosed location ...