Rugby Player Zakir Slaimankhel’s Wife and Career Explored
After making a number of exorbitant claims at the airport, rugby league player Zakir Slaimankhel and his wife have made headlines. He was kicked off the aircraft after arguing with the flight attendants.
In contrast to what he claims, the airline provides a different account of what led to his and his wife’s exclusion from “ALL Qantas” and Jetstar flights.
Famous rugby player Slaimankhel competed for Afghanistan in an international match in Indonesia. He was crowned the highest try scorer at the “Asia Rugby Sevens” championship, when his team came in second.
He works for “Muslims Around the World,” a group that provides people in third-world countries with clean water, shelter, food, education, and charitable efforts, in addition to his rugby career.
The wife of Zakir Slaimankhel, who appears guarded about her identity, is a happy marriage. At a private wedding ceremony attended by relatives and friends, the Slaimankhel couple exchanged wedding vows.
Mrs. Slaimankhel continues to be a devout woman who wears a headscarf when going out, even though they share a family of five with three kids.
Regarding the hijab, Zakir and his wife recently encountered a challenging situation after Qantas flight attendants made a remark about her outfit. According to Dailymail, the situation escalated when Zakir spoke up for his wife and began berating the flight employees.
It went horribly wrong, and after the board looked into the situation, the airline even forbade them from boarding any aircraft.
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Family of Zakir Slaimankhel kicked off Bali-bound Qantas flight
After leaving Bali, Zakir Slaimankhel and his wife made news for being removed from a “Qantas flight.”
On October 19, 2022, he and his family allegedly had a “abhorrent customer encounter” with flight attendants. au.News reported on his statement. Before returning to Sydney, Yahoo claimed they had been “embarrassed, dehumanised & belittled.”
A player commented on Facebook on Monday, nearly two weeks after the TikTok video of the argument went viral, “The racist overtones on exhibit throughout the dialogue & behaviour of Qantas service members was beyond disrespectful.”
When his wife was standing in line and changing their son’s diaper, Zakir claimed an anonymous service member dubbed her hijab a “head thingy” and stated she was “inhibiting the toilet doors from opening safely.”
Additionally, he asserted that a flight attendant told him that his wife was “preventing the toilet doors from opening safely” while she waited in line to use the lavatory. His wife reached down to pick up something off the floor and stepped out of the restroom. She did so, but a different flight attendant patronised her and made her feel guilty, which caused her to cry and become distraught over the situation.
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Qantas went on to add that Mr. Slaimenkhel and his wife were kicked from the aircraft for continuously verbally disparaging the crew. The official reportedly said, “The safety of our clients and workers is our number one priority and we do not allow any sort of abusive behaviour,” according to dailymail.
Our analysis of the incidents aboard indicates that the Slaimenkhel pair has been granted no-fly orders with Qantas Group airlines due to their actions against personnel.
A well-known rugby player has accused Qantas of racism and demeaning them in front of other passengers after getting into a violent disagreement with a flight attendant. However, the Australian airline has a different account.
An argument between a flight attendant and a New Zealander named Zakir Slaimankhel was captured on camera at Bali’s Denpasar Airport on October 21 and posted by Nine News on TikTok.
The video shows Slaimankhel, an Afghan refugee who represented his country at the Asia Rugby Sevens competition in August after coming to New Zealand as a refugee, accusing cabin crew of mishandling his pram and causing his wife to cry.
In a lengthy Facebook post on Monday night, Slaimankhel broke his silence regarding the incident and claimed that Qantas’ “appalling customer service and behaviour” on flight QF44 to Sydney had ruined his family’s two-week vacation in Bali.
He claimed the airline was “rude and condescending” to his wife, which “made her question herself and feel powerless as a visible Muslim who wears a headscarf,” and that this “made her feel humiliated and terribly disturbed.”
In a statement, Qantas refuted claims that any of its employees were impolite or discriminatory when speaking to Slaimankhel or his wife.
“Qantas takes claims of this nature seriously, and we will not stand for any type of unlawful racial, ethnic, or other discrimination…
“Our staff also denies making any offensive remarks about the dress of the passengers. Other travellers who saw the interactions have supported this.
Slaimankhel, who was travelling with his wife and three young children, was ejected off the plane, according to Qantas, after verbally insulting the crew many times before the flight left Bali. He had already been given a no-fly order with Qantas Group airlines.
The statement stated, “We acknowledge that this flight experienced a hard delay, but the safety of our passengers and crew is our first priority, and we do not allow any form of abusive behaviour. “For the safety and comfort of everyone on board, we ask customers to follow the direction of the crew.”
Slaimankhel said in a Facebook post that personnel failed to bring the stroller on board after promising to do so.
As the plane was already packed, he writes, “I immediately folded the pram and asked a service member where I should keep it.” “Without giving help, the staff member harshly retorted, “Go and pick a seat. I finally found a place to put the stroller and went back to my seat.
What Happened with Zakir Slaimankhel?
When the plane’s delay was announced, Slaimankhel claimed his wife was changing their five-month-old boy in the bathroom when he was talked at angrily numerous times.
He claimed that while waiting in line, a flight attendant instructed her to step away from the entrance.
“This staff member’s tough orders were unreasonable and made her feel devalued,” he claimed.
Slaimankhel asserted that the same employee yelled at his wife for running into another passenger as she exited the restroom.
My wife apologised and stated that because of the tight space, she had not seen me walk out backwards, he added.
@9news Get away from my face. After a heated argument with flight attendants, an Australian family was removed from their Qantas aircraft from Bali and returned to Australia. For more information, tune in to #9News tonight at 9 p.m. ET/PT on 9 News Australia.
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“Once more, the flight attendant said, “Well, just watch it,” in a patronising attitude.
She bent down before exiting the restroom to pick up something from the floor, and as she did so, another flight attendant was giving her a patronising look that made her feel repulsed. She responded, “I’m not staring at you, I’m looking past you,” when my wife asked her, “Why are you looking at me like that?” My wife was standing in the aeroplane bathroom, so her response was ludicrous.
The flight attendant allegedly continued by saying in a stereotyped way, “It’s people like you with the head thingy,” according to Slaimankhel.
He claimed that his wife was in tears and felt “very humiliated and upset” as a result of the incident.
“Their treatment caused her much distress; she felt alone, overpowered, and unfairly treated… No other traveller was treated even remotely like my family, as far as I could tell.
Slaimankhel claimed that after approaching Qantas officials for an explanation and an apology, his family was ejected from the plane.
Slaimankhel stated that the incident was “beyond insulting” and that the family felt “embarrassed, dehumanised and belittled” in front of other travellers.
The lack of empathy and compassion shown by the professionals for a young mother who needed help and had infants was shocking, he added.
“She keeps having flashbacks to the trauma. Character assassination of me has resulted from the popular TikTok videos of the incident, which had over 5.7 million views in just 24 hours.
Viewers’ reactions to the TikTok video have been divided, with some supporting the airline and others admiring Slaimankhel for standing up for his family.
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When Was Zakir Slaimankhel Born?
27-year-old Zakir Slaimankhel was born in 1995 to devoted parents.
As a New Zealander who grew up in Auckland, Zakir claimed that rugby is in his blood and that he enjoys playing it. He attended schools where playing sports was an option.
Slaimankhel left Afghanistan and Pakistan for Auckland, New Zealand, where he established his own culture. He quickly established himself as one of the foreigners making a name for themselves in the unofficial national sport of New Zealand after recognising that rugby union was the basis of the nation.
Additionally, he promotes the group Muslims Around the World and routinely shares images of disadvantaged children on Instagram. Additionally, he posts pictures of his interactions with well-known people, like TikTok phenomenon “Hasbulla Magomedov.”