Security expert: Focusing on Muslim passengers is as ridiculous as focusing on carry-on liquids

22 February 2020, 14:50

The editor of Aviation Security International challenged Andrew Castle to describe a Muslim.

Phillip Baum and Professor Anthony Glees clashed on Andrew Castle over the discrimination of Muslim passengers in airports and on airlines.

After the revelations of Michael O' Leary's racism towards Muslim passengers on his airline, Andrew Castle was joined by two security experts on either side of the argument.

Professor Glees of the University of Buckingham believes that discrimination towards Asian and Arab passengers by airport and airline security is inevitable.

He acknowledged that passengers are profiled in airports and one of the main points of profiling is inevitably through ethnic origin along with other factors.

These comments incensed Phillip Baum, editor of Aviation Security International. Baum challenged Andrew to tell him "what a Muslim person looks like".

Mr. Baum went further to point out that out of all convicted Islamist terrorists, 25% of them are converted Muslim. This point highlighted to Andrew and Professor Glees that discriminating against passengers based on their ethnic background isn't entirely effective and is the same as focusing on liquids on a plane.

Mr. Glees pointed out that a key for airline security is "knowing where to look for trouble". He stressed that you will always look deeper at someone who looks like a Jihadist than "a 70 year old granny with white hair from Bolton."

Professor Glees assured Andrew and Mr. Baum to conclude that profiling is only one of the many techniques that airport security use to keep passengers safe.