The Israeli leader revealed that the co-pilot who attempted sabotage on a Flydubai flight was indoctrinated with extremist ideology, while the United Arab Emirates has begun a terrorism investigation.
Foreign news agencies reported that the UAE took custody of the Omani co-pilot who stabbed the captain of Flydubai flight FZ 1073 and tried to force the plane to crash while en route from Dubai to Israel last Tuesday. The UAE has officially launched a terrorism investigation.
During the incident, the unnamed Omani co-pilot used a sharp object to stab the Indian captain, Smith Machar, and tried to bring down the aircraft. However, passengers and crew members broke into the cockpit and successfully restrained the rogue pilot. The backup pilot then safely landed the plane in Saudi Arabia.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who spoke with passengers on flight FZ 1073, said the co-pilot was indoctrinated with extremist Islamic ideology and shouted for someone to kill him during the incident. He compared the event to a near-major terrorist attack similar to 9/11.
"We have learned that he (the co-pilot) was indoctrinated with extremist Islamic beliefs," Netanyahu said. "The attacker shouted at the crew, 'Kill me, kill me,' which clearly shows he intended to die by suicide."
Netanyahu also questioned the pilot screening procedures, stating, "We have restrictions preventing pilots from countries without diplomatic ties to Israel from flying here, yet he (the Omani) managed to get through. How can we be sure that pilot screening is done properly?"
Flight FZ 1073 was traveling from Dubai to Tel Aviv when the incident occurred. Data from the flight tracking website Flightradar24 showed the plane rapidly descended about 17,000 feet (5,200 meters), then climbed 5,000 feet before dropping another 7,000 feet, stabilizing at about 15,000 feet. All these maneuvers happened within less than five minutes.
Flydubai announced a temporary suspension of flights between the UAE and Israel pending the investigation results.
Meanwhile, leaders from several countries, including Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Israeli President Isaac Herzog, and U.S. President Donald Trump, praised the captain and passengers who helped suppress the incident as "heroes" who saved the lives of everyone on board.
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Source:cna