The co-pilot accused of attacking the captain on an Israel-bound flight with an axe and trying to seize the controls was an Omani national who’d been barred from flying on his country’s airline because of concerns about extremist views, officials said Saturday.
asserted
officials → accuse → views
The co-pilot has been identified as Hamam al-Hammami, according to three people with knowledge of the situation, including a Gulf and Western diplomat, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.
uncertain
they → identify → media
The United Arab Emirates, which is leading the investigation, said the co-pilot attacked with the cockpit’s crash axe and tried to take control of the sharply plummeting plane in a “terrorist attack” Wednesday.
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pilot → lead → attack
His actions nearly crashed the flight with 182 people on board before passengers and others rushed in and subdued him.
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passengers → crash → him
The new details raised questions about how thoroughly FlyDubai vets potential employees, and how the co-pilot’s presence on a flight filled with Israeli passengers got past Israel’s strict security protocols.
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presence → raise → protocols
Israel’s government has said it has agreements with foreign carriers to keep pilots of nations without diplomatic ties from flying there.
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it → say → ties
Israel and Oman don’t have formal diplomatic relations.
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Israel → have → relations
The UAE government has earned a reputation for effective measures against extremist activities but has bristled in the past over criticism of security lapses.
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government → earn → lapses
The incident occurred at a sensitive time for Israel, a week before the anniversary of the Hamas-led attack on Oct. 7, 2023, that sparked the war in Gaza.
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that → occur → Gaza
It also came weeks before a highly contentious election in which security, and Oct. 7 security failures, have been central issues.
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security → come → which
FlyDubai hired the co-pilot after Oman Air barred him
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Separately, a regional official and a person familiar with the matter said the co-pilot had been barred from flying by Oman over concerns he had adopted extremist views.
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he → hire → views
The official said he was moved to an administrative job at Oman Air.
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he → say → Air
Both spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the ongoing investigation.
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Both → speak → investigation
They gave no details about the alleged extremist views.
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They → give → views
The co-pilot was later hired by UAE-based airline FlyDubai, the person said.
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person → hire → FlyDubai
It was not immediately clear to what extent the co-pilot was vetted.
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pilot → vet → ?
The Gulf diplomat said he had undergone standard security checks before being hired, but it appears that the checks focused on whether he had been convicted on criminal charges and didn’t go deeper into examining his background for potential signs of radicalization.
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he → say → radicalization
The regional official also said security agencies from four regional countries were working to establish the co-pilot’s motives, aided by the United States and other Western governments.
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agencies → say → States
The Gulf diplomat said investigations were trying to establish whether the co-pilot acted alone or “has any connection with any extremist groups.”
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pilot → say → groups
The regional official said the co-pilot was born in the UAE and his mother is Syrian.
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mother → say → UAE
He obtained Omani nationality from his father, also an Omani national.
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He → obtain → father
The regional official also said the co-pilot had traveled to Syria, with no details.
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pilot → say → details
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday said the co-pilot had undergone “Islamist radicalization,” but provided no evidence.
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pilot → say → evidence
A social media account was deleted the day of the flight
A FlyDubai spokesperson said in an email that the airline could not comment beyond its official statements and acknowledged “there are many questions at this stage.
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airline → delete → stage
There was no immediate comment from Oman Air, and Oman’s government has said nothing publicly in response to repeated questions since the incident.
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government → be → incident
In a statement to the AP, Royal Air Maroc, Morocco’s national carrier, said the co-pilot “completed a three-month theoretical training period with the airline in 2025, as part of the pre-employment process.
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pilot → say → process
At the end of this training period, his application was not selected for employment.”
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application → select → employment
Keith Coles, a spokesperson for Buckinghamshire New University in England, told the AP that al-Hammami previously completed a distance-learning course in aviation management there but “did not undertake any pilot training.”
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Hammami → tell → training
Little else was immediately known about the co-pilot’s background.
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Little → know → background
His Instagram account was active until the day of the flight and then deleted.
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account → delete → flight
Captain and passengers have described drama on board
Airlines are generally required to carry crash axes in the cockpit that could be used in an emergency to break open a window to escape or break open a panel to access a fire.
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that → describe → fire
The captain, who was badly wounded in the axe attack, has said he used his remaining energy while being attacked to unlock the cockpit door, allowing people who had noticed alarmingly unusual sounds to come in, tackle the co-pilot and stabilize the flight while passengers screamed.
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passengers → wound → flight
The plane made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia after a descent so extreme that part of the rudder was torn away, and aviation experts have marveled that it didn’t crash.
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it → make → rudder
FlyDubai has said crew traveling on the plane helped to stabilize the plane and land.
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crew → say → plane
They have not yet been publicly identified.
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They → identify → ?
Both the captain and co-pilot were later taken to the UAE.
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captain → take → UAE
The passengers, most of them Israeli, flew home later Wednesday on a separate plane, to cheers.
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most → fly → cheers
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Mednick reported from Tel Aviv, Israel, and Anna from Jerusalem.
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Mednick → report → Jerusalem
AP Washington bureau chief Anna Johnson in Washington, aviation writer Josh Funk and Sam Metz in Jerusalem contributed.
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Johnson → contribute → Jerusalem
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