Pro-Hamas hackers breach B.C. and U.S. airport display systems
A pro-Hamas Islamist group has taken credit for a series of cyberattacks at two B.C. airports and others in the U.S.
A pro-Hamas Islamist group has taken credit for a series of cyberattacks at two B.C. airports and others in the U.S.
Display and speaker systems were hijacked at Kelowna International Airport on Tuesday night at around 5:15 pm, displaying “unauthorized” pro-Hamas messaging on the airport’s flight information display screens. At the same time, Arabic chants played over the airport’s public address speakers for several minutes.
Spectators reported hearing Arabic chants along with chants of “Free Palestine” and “F&%k Trump” repeatedly for about two minutes. Flight info screens displayed the message “Hacked by Mutariff Siberislam” and read “Israel lost the war, Hamas won the war honourably. You are a pig, Donald Trump.”
Kelowna International Airport released a statement at 10:30 pm confirming that the incident was limited to a “cloud-based third-party software provider” used by the airport, and confirmed with True North that the RCMP and Transport Canada have been contacted.
“Yesterday, public displays in our terminal building, limited to the flight information display screen and public address system, were accessed by a third party to display unauthorized messaging,” the statement reads. “Our team was able to remove the messaging from systems in the terminal building within a matter of minutes. All affected systems were isolated and verified before being restored late last night.”
The statement noted that the airport conducted a joint threat assessment with the RCMP and Transport Canada and concluded that the messaging didn’t pose a “direct threat” towards the travelling public.
“To analyze the root cause, we are continuing to work with the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security and Transport Canada,” Kelowna International Airport said in the statement.
Victoria International Airport did not respond to True North’s requests for comment.
The message directed viewers to an X account, “Siberislam,” whose most recent post shows Hamas fighters firing and posing with rockets and calls the terrorist fighters “the glory of Muslims.”
Unlike Hamas, “Siberislam” is not a listed terrorist entity in Canada or any other country.
Another post shared by the account claimed that the group was successful in conducting a “Cyber attack on American airports.” And the hacker responsible was codenamed “Executioners of Abu Ubaida.” Abu Abaida was a jihadist commander under the Muslim prophet Mohammad.
The group claimed they attacked airport audio and video systems in Kelowna, B.C., Victoria, B.C., Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and Rogue Valley Medford in Oregon, indicating the group has a coordinated and international reach.
The anthem played over the PA was identified by the group as the Qassam anthem, a Jihadist song celebrating Hamas’ militant terrorist wing, the al-Qassam Brigades. The anthem celebrates jihad, martyrdom or “shahada”, sacrificing blood for Palestine and enacting revenge on Israel through violence.
Public Safety Canada and CSIS deferred True North to the police of jurisdiction.
The RCMP were not immediately available for comment.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security was similarly not immediately available for comment, though local reports in Pennsylvania confirmed that an identical cyber breach occurred at the Harrisburg airport and that local police were investigating.
“During this incident, one flight was boarding. Out of an abundance of caution, the aircraft was searched. No security issues were found, and the flight departed safely,” the Harrisburg Airport said in a statement. “The airport is operating normally.”
Tara Armstrong, the MLA for Kelowna—Lake Country—Coldstream, and house leader for the OneBC party, called the incident a “cybersecurity wake-up call.”
“As someone with years of experience working in airport ops, this is deeply alarming,” she said. “This isn’t just a tech issue – it’s a serious safety and security breach. Time for a cybersecurity wake-up call across all airports.”
Macklin McCall, the BC Conservatives’ public safety critic and MLA for West Kelowna—Peachland, similarly shared a post raising concerns about the group celebrating Hamas, the organization responsible for the deadliest attack on Jewish civilians since the Holocaust.
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