The News Minute | September 25, 2014 | 02:53 pm IST
She's the first female fighter pilot from UAE and flies an F-16 , while he is a Saudi Arabian prince. All this sounds like a plot from a Hollywood movie. But no.
UAE’s first female fighter pilot Mariam Al Mansouri and Saudi Arabian prince Khaled bin Salman are part of troops attacking ISIS militants in Syria.
Thirty five year old Maj. Mariam Al Mansouri, a squadron leader flying a F-16 Block 60 fighter jet will be among the many jets dropping bombs in attacks against the Islamic State in Syria, said NYdailynews.
From Abu Dhabi, Al Mansouri holds an undergraduate degree in English literature and was among the first women to join the UAE Air Force when it first started allowing women to join.
Officials here telling me #UAE has the best performance in the alliance, thanks to leadership of Mariyam al-Mansouri pic.twitter.com/btWOMq8ZvY
— Zaid Benjamin (@zaidbenjamin) September 25, 2014Captain Mariam Hassan Salem Al Mansouri, the first female fighter pilot in the #UAE #Airforce. pic.twitter.com/tlq1wCFkG9
— Ali R (@Baahirezaman) July 31, 2014This is Maj. Mariam Al Mansouri from the UAE. She flies an F-16 & is taking part in the operation against ISIS. pic.twitter.com/5PYlg2to3y
— CBS Evening News (@CBSEveningNews) September 24, 2014 xxxx
Politically speaking, another interesting personality taking part in the attacks against ISIS is Prince Khaled bin Salman, the son of Crown Prince Salman bin Abdulaziz reported the Daily Mail . This news is intended not only to placate the West on Saudi Arabia’s stand on extremist groups, but also sends across a strong message to its own people that ISIS is an enemy, said the report.However, once the pictures of eight airmen were released by the Saudi Press Agency, they received online death threats, said The Guardian.Prince Khalid bin Salman, the son of the #Saudi Crown Prince, seen in his warplane after an airstrike in #Syria pic.twitter.com/560Tv926bh
— Zaid Benjamin (@zaidbenjamin) September 24, 2014@Gidi_Traffic Son of Saudi Crown Prince Salman bin Abdulaziz,Prince Khaled bin Salman,leading strikes against ISIS pic.twitter.com/CNa7MnlxbS
— AustynZOGS (@Austynzogs) September 25, 2014