NewzIt is too early to say if Iran had any involvement in an attack by a pilot who stabbed another pilot and tried to take over a flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv, Israel’s prime minister has said. The Flydubai plane plunged more than 17,000ft (5,200m) two hours into its journey on Wednesday, before passengers and crew overpowered the attacker and retook control to land safely. The stabbed pilot, Indian national Captain Smit Machchhar, is in hospital in a stable condition, and has been hailed a “true hero” by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
One passenger, Yaniv Hayun, described how he put the attacker, who was trying to disable the plane, in a chokehold before other passengers helped pin him down. The alleged attacker, who was arrested in Saudi Arabia, is expected to be transferred to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), where the plane took off from, Netanyahu told Fox News. Asked whether there was any indication as of now of Iran’s involvement, he replied: “It’s too early to say”.
He added that the pilot was “now being investigated in Saudi Arabia”. The UAE’s chief prosecutor said on Thursday an investigation had been launched into the incident, including if there was any link to “terrorist” activity. Meanwhile, he and India’s leader Narendra Modi called stabbed pilot Machchhar a “hero”.
“Despite being stabbed and seriously injured, he fought back, resisted, opened the cockpit door, and enabled passengers and crew to overpower the attacker – preventing a catastrophic mid-air disaster,” Netanyahu wrote on X. Modi praised the pilot’s actions, writing on X: “In the face of the gravest danger and despite being seriously injured, he showed immense courage and an unwavering resolve to protect the lives of others.” Israeli President Isaac Herzog told the BBC it was “an amazing, heroic event of resilient people who work together”. “There was a huge miracle and huge bravery and we are grateful to the Indian pilot who was such a hero,” he said to Radio 4’s Today programme on Thursday.
Netanyahu told CNN Israel did not have any warning or advance intelligence about the incident on the plane, which was flying 174 people to Israel. Preliminary findings from a separate Israeli investigation, suggest that the alleged attacker intended to crash the plane, an Israeli security source told BBC Arabic. The source said the investigation – led by Israel’s intelligence agency Mossad – i…
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AFP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday the co-pilot behind an apparent attack on a flight to Israel had undergone "Islamist radical indoctrination" as the United Arab Emirates said it was probing a possible terror link. The dramatic events on Wednesday saw passengers reroute the flydubai plane to stop it from crashing, making an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia before the flight's mostly Israeli passengers were flown home to a hero's welcome. "We know that he underwent Islamist radical indoctrination," Netanyahu told the "Fox & Friends" TV show without elaborating, adding that the co-pilot, reportedly an Omani national, was being interrogated.
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