UAE reveals FlyDubai co-pilot plotted 'suicide attack' on Ben Gurion

The United Arab Emirates' Federal Attorney General on Friday announced that a FlyDubai co-pilot had plotted to commandeer an aircraft and conduct a "suicide attack" against Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion Airport. Hamad Saif Al Shamsi said the 29-year-old Omani national intended to seize control of the Sept. 30 flight from Dubai, according to the official WAM news agency.

Al Shamsi stated that the suspect "had begun carrying out a premeditated terrorist plot to seize control of the aircraft and use it to launch a suicide attack targeting the passenger terminal at Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv, with the aim of causing the greatest possible loss of life." Investigators had examined the suspect's "ideological and professional background," he added.

Extremist ideology uncovered

According to the attorney general, signs of "extremism and terrorism" emerged in 2017 while the suspect was studying in Australia. The investigation revealed that the co-pilot had planned the attack in advance, with the Sept. 30 flight identified as the intended target for the operation.