Terrorist ideologies guided mall murder suspect

Abu Dhabi - The niqab-clad woman, who allegedly brutally murdered an American woman teacher in a washroom of a mall on Reem Island in Abu Dhabi, reportedly listened to lectures by Osama bin Laden and Abu Musab Al Zarqawi (leaders of terror organisation Al Qaeda); watched video clips of killings and beheadings perpetrated by terror groups; and read articles about terror acts, which influenced her beliefs, turning her into a proponent of these destructive and terrorist ideologies, the UAE attorney-general has said.

Referring the accused, identified as Alaa Bader Abdullah — dubbed the Reem Island Ghost — to the Federal Supreme Court, Counsellor Salem Saeed Kubaish said the accused donated funds to Al Qaeda with the aim of financing terror operations inside the UAE. “The accused committed the crime against a foreign resident (a US woman) in a shopping centre to spread terror among both expatriate residents and visitors and embarrass and undermine the State’s authorities globally.”

She has been charged with the murder of Ibolya Ryan by stabbing her with a knife; attempted killing of residents of an apartment in Al Habtoor building on Abu Dhabi Corniche by planting a crude explosive device near the door of the flat; and attempting to ignite a detonator fuse aimed at killing the residents — a crime which could not be committed due to the fuse not working.

She is also accused of “collecting explosive materials, which is prohibited to be assembled by law without a licence; establishing and managing an account on the Internet under a pseudonym aimed at promoting ideas of a terror group; publishing through this account information intended to distort the reputation, prestige and stature of the State and undermine its figures; and funding a terror organisation knowing that it will be used in terrorist acts”.

He said she committed these acts “with the intent of causing death to stir up fear among people, to compromise the prestigious stature of the State and threaten its security and stability”.

The attorney-general said the charges were filed against the accused after extensive investigations. The accused embraced takfiri and jihadist ideology and then engaged in terror acts in support of terrorist organisations like Al Qaeda and Daesh. Through her online account, the accused promoted and published audio-visual and print materials of terror groups, Kubaish said.

He said the accused confessed to the charges levelled against her. All legal guarantees were granted to her as due, he said.