Flydubai co-pilot developed extremist views while studying in Australia: UAE prosecutors

The flydubai co-pilot who allegedly tried to hijack an Israel-bound flight and attacked a colleague in the cockpit spent about two years in Australia as a student. It is here that he was radicalised, according to prosecutors in the United Arab Emirates. Dr Hamad Saif al-Shamsi, attorney general of the UAE on Friday (Oct 9) said al-Hammami’s began to develop extremist views while he was studying at RMIT University in Melbourne.

"The findings indicated that signs of his drift towards extremism and terrorism first emerged in 2017, while he was studying in Australia," the attorney-general was quoted as saying by the UAE's state news agency WAM.

During his time in Melbourne, al-Hammami’ got influenced by the hardline takfiri ideology.

"During that period, he was influenced by takfiri [radical] ideology through reading extremist literature and following online content glorifying terrorist organisations and suicide attacks," said the attorney-general.

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According to the statement, al-Hammami revealed to prosecutors that he drew inspiration from the 9/11 terrorist attacks of 2001.

“The idea of carrying out a similar operation using an aircraft became firmly established in his thinking,” the statement said.

Al-Hammami was granted an Australian student visa in 2014, before arriving in the country to commence a university course the following year. He left Australia in 2017, and his visa was cancelled in 2019 after authorities confirmed he was no longer enrolled in the course.

Australian security agencies launched an investigation after it came to light that al-Hammami spent about two years in the country as a student.

More than 170 passengers and crew were on board flight FZ1073 on its way to Israel on 30 September.