In an Abu Dhabi shopping mall, an American kindergarten teacher and mother was stabbed to death on Monday. Authorities released footage of the incident on Wednesday.
The attack on upscale Reem Island in the United Arab Emirate happened nearly a month after the U.S. embassy in Abu Dhabi warned Americans of an online posting that encouraged attacks against teachers at American and other international schools in the Middle East.
The U.S. embassy in the UAE is aware of the death and is in contact with Emirati authorities.
According to the Abu Dhabi Interior Ministry’s website, the 37-year-old woman was stabbed in a public restroom by a sharp tool. Her name has not officially been released to the public, though NBC reported that her family identified her as Ibolya Ryan. Local police said the attacker wore a black robe, full-face veil, and gloves commonly worn by local women in the Arab Gulf region.
CCTV footage of the suspect, dubbed the “Reem Island Ghost” http://t.co/6NxPYHn6vM
— وزارة الداخلية (@moiuae) December 3, 2014
The teacher’s children, 11-year-old twins, are in now police custody. They will remain there until their father, and the victim’s ex-husband, arrives to the country from abroad.
Col Rashid Borshid, head of the criminal investigation department, said the attacker remains free. Police are investigating the attacker’s possible motives and gender.
Before the American teacher was attacked in the Abu Dhabi shopping mall, a fight broke out between the attacker and the victim in the women’s restroom.
In a statement Borshid said, “The Abu Dhabi Police will spare no effort in order to unveil this heinous crime and bring the culprit to justice.”
The United Arab Emirate is a seven-state federation that is allied with the West. In fact, its western population is so large that foreigners outnumber Emirati citizens in the region.
The UAE considers itself a safe place within the Middle East. The federation is part of the coalition to send airstrikes against ISIS fighters in Iraq and Syria.
With the American teacher being killed in the Abu Dhabi shopping mall, the UAE may not be as safe as we thought.
[Photo Credit: Wikipedia]