Al-Qaeda supporters are calling for new attacks targeting Americans and Israelis aboard commercial aircraft, explicitly invoking 9/11 while praising Wednesday’s attempted hijacking of a passenger jet flying to Tel Aviv. The call appeared in Friday’s edition of al-Bayan, a publication launched in July by pro-Al-Qaeda supporters. The article included images of the September 11 attacks alongside the plane which was supposed to be used for a suicide attack against Israel and declared: “The war isn’t over yet,” before saying aircraft carrying Americans and Israelis could still be targeted. The publication also declared that the US and Israel have “far more enemies today than before” and predicted: “The day will come when the empire of evil America will end.” Hamam Al Hammami, the Omani co-pilot who attacked the captain aboard the flight, is a radicalized Islamist who attempted to seize control of the aircraft and crash it in Israel as a terrorist Jihadi act. Yet mainstream Western media outlets, like Reuters, the BBC and CNN described what happened as a “scuffle” or “spat” between the two pilots. Islamist radicalization concerns are minimized in Western countries because governments in place want to continue facilitating mass migration from the Middle East and North Africa. They also want to avoid admitting the dangers Islamism poses to Western societies. Countries like the UAE, Israel, and India understand the threat posed by Islamist extremism and have made combating radicalization and terrorism central to their security policies. The ruling self-hating political and media establishment in the West must be replaced by leaders who prioritize the security of their own nations.

Al Jazeera has repeatedly provided mass audiences for some of the most radical voices in Islamist politics, broadcasting messages from al-Qaeda leaders Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri, giving Muslim Brotherhood ideologue Yusuf al-Qaradawi a hugely popular weekly program from which he endorsed suicide bombings against Israelis, and extensively airing speeches, interviews and statements from Hamas leaders. The Qatari-funded network has been banned or restricted at various times by several Arab governments, including Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and Jordan, due to its support of Islamist movements and threats to national security. The issue is back under scrutiny after the attempted hijacking and crashing of Tel Aviv-bound Flight FZ1073 by a radicalized Islamist Omani co-pilot. His attempted terrorist attack reflects themes long promoted by violent Islamist movements: portraying Israel and Jews as legitimate targets, glorifying armed jihad and presenting violence as an acceptable response to political and religious grievances. All of these ideals are voiced by Islamist figures and organizations given a platform on Al Jazeera. When it comes to the flight hijacking attempt, Al Jazeera Arabic framed the incident around a “quarrel” between the pilots and described the hijacking alert as a “false” distress signal, while discrediting Netanyahu for characterizing it as terrorism before investigators had reached that conclusion.