UAE Executes Alaa Al-Hashemi: Woman Was Convicted Of Stabbing American Teacher And Attempting To Spread Militant Ideology

UAE has executed Alaa Al-Hashemi. She was tried for the murder of an American woman.

Ala’a Badr Abdullah al-Hashemi, who brutally murdered Ibolya Ryan, an American teacher, was sentenced to death for her crimes by a UAE court. The sentencing was carried out yesterday. She was also convicted of the attempted murder of an American-Egyptian doctor. Apparently she had tried to kill the doctor by planting a bomb outside his apartment. Fortunately, the bomb failed to explode and was safely defused, reported CNN.

The state media labeled her actions as a terror attack, and she was also accused of instigating people and trying to recruit youth by generating and publishing hate content online. Analysis of her computers revealed she was urging people to join her war. She was so radicalized that it was believed she had clandestinely lent financial support to some terrorist groups in addition to spreading jihadist ideology through email and social media. Apparently, the bomb she planted outside the doctor’s apartment was made by Alaa Al-Hashemi herself. She might have gained the knowledge of making IED (Improvised Explosive Devices) online since jihadists do not allow women to be part of their holy war.

Alaa Al-Hashemi was spotted by multiple CCTV cameras as she made her way through the shopping mall in Reem Island, Abu Dhabi. She is then believed to have waited till Ryan had to use the restroom. Making sure there weren’t any females in the lavatory, Alaa Al-Hashemi launched a frontal assault on Ryan, stabbing her multiple times and letting her bleed to death on the bathroom floor.

After executing her crime, Alaa Al-Hashemi was seen running towards an elevator and hastily exiting the mall. Incidentally, the murder happened within two months of the American Embassy issuing a warning about such attacks. The U.S. Embassy in Abu Dhabi had been regularly issuing online circulars which warned against attacks that were specifically aimed towards teachers.

When her case came up for trial, Alaa Al-Hashemi played the insanity card. She maintained that her actions were driven by mental illness. She is said to have burst into fits of laughter and broken down in tears while the court was hearing the case. The UAE court, however, saw through her attempts by having her examined by a psychiatrist, who confirmed she was quite sane and that she had stabbed Ryan inside a mall bathroom “with an intention to kill,” reported HNGN.

Eventually, Alaa Al-Hashemi confessed to the UAE court that she had attempted to seek vengeance for the detention of her husband by the State Security, reported MSN.

[Image Credit | Abu Dhabi Police, YouTube Screen Grab]