On June 21, 2017, Canadian Amor M. Ftouhi attacked uniformed airport police officer, Lt. Jeff Neville, with a 12 inch knife and stabbed him in the neck at the Flint Bishop International Airport. Amor M. Ftouhi, a Canadian citizen from Montreal, Quebec, has been in the U.S. legally since June 16, 2017.  The terrorist weapon was “green handle and a black serrated blade and was marked Amazon Jungle Survival Knife.”  The airport was evacuated shortly after the terrorist attack. The terrorist was subdued and Lt. Neville taken to the hospital for emergency treatment. The injured officer is in “satisfactory” condition, authorities said on the afternoon of June 21. The Detroit Free Press has been reporting that the “FBI says the stabbing of a police officer at a Flint airport Wednesday is being investigated as an ‘act of terror’.”

According to Lt. Jeff Neville’s LinkedIn page, he has worked at the airport since 2001 and is a former Genesee County Sheriff’s lieutenant. “I am responsible for overseeing the operations of law enforcement on the day to day”, he wrote.

The U.S. Department of Justice filed a federal criminal complaint against a Amor M. Ftouhi today for the attack. The complaint states in part: “on the morning of June 21, 2017, an individual who was later identified as Amor M. Ftouhi used a large knife to stab a police officer at the airport. Specifically, the officer told me that Ftouhi walked up to a fully-uniformed police officer at a publicly accessible area of the airport, yelled ‘Allahu Akbar,’ pulled out a knife and stabbed the officer in the neck. After stabbing the police officer, Ftouhi continued to yell ‘Allah’ several times. He further exclaimed something similar to, ‘you have killed people in Syria, Iraq, and Afghanistan, and we are all going to die.’ The law enforcement officer was able to subdue Ftouhi, who asked the officer why he did not kill him. The officer also took all of Ftouhi’s possessions, which included identification documents for Amor M. Ftouhi.” “I have also spoken with another FBI agent who reviewed surveillance video of the airport premises, including the location of the stabbing. The agent informed me that at approximately 8:52 a.m., Ftouhi entered the first level of Bishop International Airport carrying a red duffle and a dark satchel bag. At approximately 9:10, Ftouhi went up an escalator to the second level of the airport. At the top of the escalator, Ftouhi turned left to go to a restaurant. At approximately 9:37:56, Ftouhi left the restaurant carrying both bags. Ftouhi entered a second-floor restroom at 9: 3 8: 15 and left at approximately 9:38:43 without either bag. At 9:38:48, Ftouhi attacked the officer and was subdued by other law enforcement shortly after.”

The Montreal edition of La Presse published a photograph of Canadian Amor M. Ftouhi with online reports about the terrorist attack.

It appears likely that terrorist Amor Ftouhi intended the attack as former of terrorist martyrdom, and was surprised that he was not killed by police.

The Canadian RCMP and the SPVM police officers also agreed to assist in the investigation to terrorist Amor Ftouhi, and investigated two women associated with him. La Press reported on June 21 that the RCMP and SPVM “entered an apartment building in the East of the city in connection with the suspect. A security perimeter is in place.” La Press also reported that “[a]ccording to our sources, the Quebec suspect was not known to Canadian law enforcement authorities.” La Press states that NBC reported Amor Ftouhi “tried to get a gun to fire, but in vain. Then, he would have bought the knife used in the attack.”

According to the La Press report, the FBI initial investigation indicates belief that Amor Ftouhi acted alone. La Press quoted FBI special agent David Gelios: “We do not believe that other individuals were involved. We have no information that suggests a broader terrorist conspiracy, but it is very early in the investigation. We request search warrants for electronic equipment, for his vehicle. Only time can tell us if other people were aware of the plan, but for now we see it as a lone wolf. […] Obviously, he has a hatred for the United States.”

Amor Ftouhi’s social media background stated that he was originally from Tunisia, and that he followed Tunisian organizations.  It also stated that he was previously a student at the Faculty at Humanities in Tunis.  His social media account stated that his last job was with Industrielle Alliance, an auto and home insurance company with offices in Montreal and throughout Quebec. Amor Ftouhi’s Facebook social media friends posted a variety of online videos, including one recently of the extremist cleric Zair Naik.

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Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.) rejects all terrorists attacks as an assault on the human safety and security, the human rights, of all of our fellow human beings.  We urge all people to reject the tactics of terrorism, and to reject ideologies of extremism that de-humanize our fellow human beings, and allow extremists to believe that acts of terror are justifiable.  They are never justifiable, and we call for all people to support our shared universal human rights, without qualification.