Flydubai co-pilot confesses mid-air cockpit attack was revenge for Gaza conflict

Omani co-pilot Hamam al-Hammami has reportedly confessed to investigators that his violent mid-air assault on a flydubai flight was motivated by a desire to avenge Gaza and die as a martyr. The confession follows the September 30 incident aboard Flight 1073 from Dubai to Tel Aviv, which was carrying over 170 passengers. According to investigative reports, al-Hammami attacked Captain Smit Machchhar with a cockpit crash axe less than an hour before landing, causing the aircraft to rapidly plunge over 17,000 feet.
The catastrophic crash was averted when Captain Machchhar successfully unlocked the cockpit door, enabling passengers to intervene and subduing the attacker. Off-duty pilots traveling on the aircraft subsequently took control of the flight instruments. United Arab Emirates authorities, who are leading the investigation, have classified the incident as a terrorist attack. Reports indicate al-Hammami had initially planned to covertly kill the captain, shut down the engines, and crash the plane into a building in Tel Aviv. He had reportedly abandoned a similar attempt in July due to a personal friendship with a crew member.
Prior to the incident, al-Hammami was terminated by Oman’s national airline due to extremist tendencies. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated the co-pilot had undergone radical indoctrination, and social media accounts linked to him featured Al-Qaeda figures. While al-Hammami claims he acted independently, Israel’s counterintelligence agency, Shin Bet, is actively reviewing his phone records, foreign travel history to nations hostile to Israel, and contacts to see if external actors directed the plot.