Media Advisory: Dr. Carole Lieberman on FlyDubai Incident and the Psychological Impact of Global Unrest

Dr. Carole Lieberman offers expert insight on the FlyDubai mid‑air incident, global unrest, and the psychological impact of terrorism and trauma.

BEVERLY HILLS, CA, UNITED STATES, October 6, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Last week—just days before Israel’s day of mourning for the October 7 attacks—a serious mid‑air incident was interrupted aboard a FlyDubai passenger jet. Yesterday, U.S. military aircraft were repositioned from a key ally’s air base. Today, violent riots are erupting across France.

According to Dr. Carole Lieberman, M.D., M.P.H., nationally known as The Terrorist Therapist^®, these events—occurring in the shadow of the 25th anniversary of 9/11—are “chilling reminders of the fragility of democracy and our collective safety.” Yet, she emphasizes that even amid trauma, courage persists.

A Near‑Catastrophe Thwarted by Passengers
In her new Times of Israel column published today, Dr. Lieberman highlights the extraordinary bravery aboard FlyDubai Flight 1073, where passengers and crew intervened after a copilot allegedly attempted to interfere with the aircraft’s operation.

“Citizens—including Yaniv Hayoun, an everyday Israeli who stepped into extraordinary circumstances—rushed forward to prevent what could have been a catastrophic event,” Lieberman writes. “Their collective bravery—captain, crew, and civilians—stopped what authorities say could have been a deliberate attempt to crash the plane.”

The world has taken notice.

Former U.S. Ambassador Mike Huckabee called the incident a “miracle.” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised Captain Smit Machchhar’s “immense courage.” Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi commended his “unwavering resolve,” noting that his actions “saved countless lives.”

Israeli officials have announced that Captain Machchhar and others will receive Israel’s highest honor for their actions.

Many have compared the bravery of the passengers to those aboard Flight 93 on 9/11, who prevented terrorists from flying their plane into the White House or the Capitol.

A Psychological Story, Not Just a Security Story
“This near‑disaster, occurring just before the third anniversary of October 7, is not only a security story—it is a psychological one,” Dr. Lieberman explains. “Terrorism is designed to destabilize the public’s sense of safety, to create fear in ordinary moments, and to erode trust in the systems that protect us.”

“When an alleged attack is thwarted so close to a national day of mourning, it reminds us that danger persists—but also that courage can interrupt terror’s psychological advantage.”

A Lifetime of Work on Terrorism and Trauma
Dr. Lieberman, a board‑certified psychiatrist and lifelong Jew, has spent decades treating victims of terrorism and analyzing extremist psychology for national media. She traveled to Israel shortly after the October 7 attacks, meeting citizens still processing the shock and grief of that day.

“Too many leaders minimize the threat, rewrite the meaning of October 7, or treat terrorism as a political talking point rather than a human catastrophe,” she says.

Last month, she attended the National September 11 Memorial & Museum’s 25th‑anniversary events, standing with survivors and first responders “who know what it means to live with trauma that never fully heals.” During the United Nations General Assembly, she sponsored a mobile billboard truck in New York City to remind world leaders that terrorism “is not a distant geopolitical concept—it is a daily threat that demands moral clarity.”

A Call for Vigilance
The FlyDubai incident underscores a central theme of Dr. Lieberman’s work: terrorists and other violent extremist actors depend on psychological dominance.

“But when individuals fight back, as they did aboard Flight 93 and now aboard Flight 1073, the entire equation changes,” she writes.

MEDIA AVAILABILITY
Dr. Lieberman is available for interviews today and throughout the week on:

The FlyDubai incident and rising global terror threats

The psychological impact of the October 7 anniversary

Extremist rhetoric in Western culture and academia

Trauma, resilience, and public psychology

Global antisemitism and its psychological effects

Lessons from 9/11 and Flight 93 + more

Dr. Carole Lieberman is a board‑certified psychiatrist, author, and Emmy‑honored TV news‑talk commentator known for her psychological and socio‑political analysis of national events. She trained at NYU‑Bellevue and Anna Freud’s London Clinic and served for years on the clinical faculty of UCLA’s Neuropsychiatric Institute.

Kirsten A. Fedewa
Kirsten Fedewa & Associates, LLC
+1 202-365-6936
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