A female jihadist who killed an American teacher in an Abu Dhabi shopping mall in December 2014 was executed on Monday, state media reported, according to Sky News.
Al’a Badr Abdullah al-Hashemi was sentenced to death on June 29 for stabbing Ibolya Ryan — a 47-year-old teacher from Colorado — and for attempting to bomb an American-Egyptian doctor.
Footage from security cameras show a woman robed in a black abaya, shayla (head scarf), niqab (face cover), and black gloves roaming through the mall, talking to a security officer and purchasing a newspaper. She then stabbed Ryan, a mother of twins, with a sharp tool in the public restroom. Security cameras show al-Hashemi walking out of the mall before security guards or bystanders can catch up. A blood-stained butchers knife was found at the scene.
Al-Hashemi’s lawyers argued she suffered from chronic mental illness, which caused her to have “unreal visions” and see “ghost-like people,” and that she needed psychological help, according to the local newspaper, The National.
In response, authorities said al-Hashemi embraced “jihadist ideology and then engaged in terrorist acts in support of terrorist organizations,” such as al-Qaeda and ISIS.
Al-Hashemi was also charged with financing terrorist organizations in the UAE, collecting explosive material, and creating social media accounts to spread terrorist ideology.
It is unclear how al-Hashemi’s execution was carried out.