Flydubai hijacking suspect’s Melbourne link
Australian investigators probe whether the co-pilot accused of a hijack attempt was radicalised in Melbourne.
The co-pilot accused of attempting to hijack a flydubai flight bound for Tel Aviv last week studied in Melbourne, and Australian counter-terrorism investigators are examining whether he was radicalised here.
Hamam al-Hammami, 29, an Omani national, was enrolled in a Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering at RMIT University between 2015 and 2017 and did not complete the degree, The Australian reported.
In a confidential update to the university’s leadership obtained by The Australian, acting vice-chancellor Catherine Itsiopoulos confirmed RMIT was working with the Victorian Joint Counter Terrorism Team, comprising the AFP, Victoria Police and ASIO.
“RMIT has been collaborating with the Victorian Joint Counter Terrorism Team with their investigation and importantly, there is no security threat to RMIT,” she wrote.
Investigators are examining whether al-Hammami established extremist contacts or began his radicalisation during his two years in Melbourne. New Zealand police are separately looking into time he spent there, assistant commissioner Michael Johnson told the paper.
Al-Hammami allegedly attacked Captain Smit Machchhar with a cockpit crash axe on flight FZ1073 from Dubai to Tel Aviv, in what the UAE prosecutor-general described as a terrorist attack. He allegedly told interrogators he had joined flydubai to target Tel Aviv and intended to fly the aircraft into an Israeli building. The plane went into a steep dive before the wounded captain forced open the cockpit door and passengers intervened. It landed safely in Saudi Arabia.
ECAJ co-CEO Alex Ryvchin said the incident was reminiscent of Palestinian hijackings in the 1970s and of September 11.
“What makes it extraordinary is that despite there being a terrorist apparently at the controls of the plane, through the intervention of the pilot and Israeli passengers a certain catastrophe was averted.
“If there’s one thing we know about Israelis it’s that they don’t back down in the face of terror. They fight for life and don’t wait for others to save the day. Their bravery should be an example to the entire world.”
Al-Hammami had previously lived in Syria during the civil war, posted online in support of al-Qaeda, and been barred from flying by Omani authorities over extremism concerns.