Hamam al-Hammami, the Omani co-pilot accused of stabbing Captain Smit Machchhar and attempting to crash a flydubai flight bound for Tel Aviv, had already come to the attention of authorities for his radical extremist tendencies.
asserted
Hammami → accuse → tendencies
Despite this he was cleared to fly to Israel by flydubai.
asserted
he → clear → flydubai
Investigators are trying to establish how an Omani pilot ended up as first officer on a flight to Israel, given that Israel and Oman do not have diplomatic relations.
asserted
Israel → try → relations
Al-Hammami is a 29-year-old Omani national, according to US media reports.
uncertain
Hammami → accord → reports
He entered pilot training with Oman Air and worked for the airline for several years.
asserted
He → enter → years
A LinkedIn profile bearing his name, which CNN said was verified by a source as belonging to him, showed a seven-year stint at Oman Air ending in February 2025.
asserted
CNN → bear → February
It also listed a subsequent job with Royal Air Maroc, from June 2025 to January 2026.
asserted
It → list → January
The profile has since been deleted.
asserted
profile → delete → ?
Investigators are also examining social-media material attributed to al-Hammami.
asserted
Investigators → examine → Hammami
A deleted video showed Israeli aircraft in Dubai and ended with images of former al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri and al-Qaeda-linked suicide bomber Humam Khalil Abu-Mulal al-Balawi.
asserted
video → delete → Zawahiri
Another post featured an AI-generated image of Mecca, Medina and Jerusalem accompanied by a poem about rejecting humiliation and not fearing death.
asserted
post → feature → death
CNN said it remained unclear who posted the material or whether the posts had been scheduled as they were posted after the flydubai incident.
uncertain
they → say → incident
CNN also analysed thousands of deleted posts attributed to al-Hammami, including material expressing strongly misogynistic and conservative views.
asserted
CNN → analyse → views
How did he get into the cockpit?
asserted
he → get → cockpit
The question about his presence on a flight headed towards Tel Aviv arose because Oman does not have diplomatic relations with Israel, yet al-Hammami was serving as a co-pilot on a Dubai-Tel Aviv flight operated by a UAE airline.
Israeli authorities are investigating how he came to be assigned to the flight and whether aviation-security procedures were followed.
asserted
procedures → head → flight
CBS News reported that sources initially suggested al-Hammami could have held dual citizenship, which they said might explain how he was cleared to fly to Israel.
uncertain
he → report → Israel
He was born in the UAE to an Omani father and Syrian mother and spent much of his life outside Oman, according to sources cited by CNN.
uncertain
He → bear → CNN
However, a later report by Jerusalem Post citing people familiar with the investigation said he did not have a second nationality, leaving the question of how he was cleared unresolved.
asserted
he → cite → question
According to sources cited by CBS News, Omani government surveillance found that al-Hammami was visiting radical websites while he was undergoing pilot training.
uncertain
he → accord → training
Oman Air subsequently transferred him from flying duties to an administrative role.
asserted
Air → transfer → role
One source said he later resigned from the airline after being placed on desk duty and left around 2024.
asserted
he → say → duty
Other reports have described him as having been barred or suspended from flying in Oman over concerns about his extremist views.
asserted
reports → describe → views
After leaving Oman Air, al-Hammami moved to Dubai and eventually joined flydubai.
asserted
Hammami → leave → flydubai
Sources told CBS News that flydubai hired him without vetting him through the Omani government.
asserted
flydubai → tell → government
That has become one of the central questions in the investigation: whether information about his earlier removal from flying duties was passed on to his subsequent employers or relevant security authorities.
asserted
information → become → employers
It remains unclear what background checks were conducted when he joined flydubai.
uncertain
he → remain → flydubai
What are investigators probing now?
asserted
investigators → probe → What
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said investigators believe al-Hammami underwent Islamist radicalisation and was trying to crash the aircraft with its passengers.
asserted
Hammami → say → passengers
He has also said authorities are examining whether he was sent by someone else.
asserted
he → say → someone
US president Donald Trump separately suggested that al-Hammami could be linked to Iran, although Netanyahu has said it was too early to determine whether Iran was involved.
uncertain
Iran → suggest → Iran
The UAE has opened an investigation into whether the attack involved terrorist activity, prior planning or outside direction, while Israeli authorities are examining how al-Hammami came to be part of the flight crew.
asserted
Hammami → open → crew
The Aporia
