Investigation in the United Arab Emirates: FlyDubai co-pilot planned a terrorist act

The investigation conducted in the United Arab Emirates on the FlyDubai Fz1073 flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv last Wednesday revealed that the co-pilot was planning a "terrorist act" and that he used the emergency ax in the cockpit to attack the captain, attempting to "take control of the plane": this is what was stated by the UAE Attorney General, Hamad Saif Al Shamsi, quoted by the official Wam news agency.

The same prosecutor added that the investigations into what happened on board the flight in question are continuing.

The co-pilot suspected of an attempted terrorist attack on a Flydubai flight has been identified as Hamam al-Hammami, a 29-year-old Omani. Several US media are writing this. CNN reports that 2 posts were published on a LinkedIn profile under that name - later removed - 9 hours after the incident. The first with footage shot from the cockpit of a Boeing 737 Max, with footage of planes from Israeli companies such as El Al, and a photo of Ayman al-Zawahiri, who led al-Qaeda after Osama bin Laden. The second with images of Mecca, Medina and Jerusalem. It is unclear who made the posts or whether they were pre-planned.

The first flight bringing Israeli citizens back home from the United Arab Emirates, after the suspension of connections following the accident on the Flydubai flight, landed in Tel Aviv in the early hours of Saturday, as reported by the Israeli airport authority website.

The arrival came after Wednesday's events on the Dubai-Tel Aviv route, which authorities say narrowly avoided a catastrophe.

Authorities in the United Arab Emirates are investigating the incident and have not yet established the attacker's motive, although Israeli and US leaders have suggested links to Islamist extremism or Iran.

Saturday's repatriation flight, operated by Israeli company Arkia, arrived from Dubai at Ben Gurion Airport shortly after 1am. The Arkia flight took off from Dubai on Friday, becoming the first flight operated by an Israeli company from the Emirates since Flydubai suspended the route to Israel and El Al canceled flights scheduled to bring Israeli citizens home.