Melbourne Islamic leader silent on centre’s alleged Flydubai hijacker links in Facebook video

The leader of a Melbourne Islamic centre allegedly linked to the accused Flydubai hijacker has rejected any connection with the radicalised pilot, saying he never met the suspect, and condemned “violence in all its forms”. The UAE government has alleged that investigators had traced the ideological and professional background of the 29-year-old suspect, Omani national Hammam al-Hammami, and that his “drift towards extremism and terrorism” began while a student at RMIT University in Melbourne in 2017. The UAE’s attorney-general stated al-Hammami, had said that while studying in Melbourne he regularly attended a mosque affiliated with RMIT, and through those visits had become acquainted with people associated with a centre known as “MyCentre”. He allegedly said that the centre was managed by a man known as “Abu Hamza” but it was not stated whether the suspect had ever met Abu Hamza. There was no allegation that anyone at the centre was involved in radicalising al-Hammami or had kept in contact with him or had any knowledge of his intentions before the 30 September flight. In a statement issued late on Monday, Samir Mohtadi – who also goes by Abu Hamza – said al-Hammami was unknown to the Multicultural Youth Centre (MyCentre).
Read More