Israel plane attacker was banned from flying by Oman over suspected radicalisation – report
The FlyDubai co-pilot who stabbed his captain had previously been banned from flying over concerns he had radical ideological views, it has been reported.
Though the pilot- an Omani national – was banned by his country, he was still hired by FlyDubai, according to the Wall Street Journal.
However, the nature of his radicalisation has not been shared.
CNN reported that the pilot had been removed from a previous job at Oman’s national airline last year following concerns about his extremist views.
The flight plunged more than 14,000ft in less than 30 seconds as it flew over Saudi Arabia on the journey from the United Arab Emirates to Israel, according to the flight-tracking website Flightradar24.
The flight, carrying 182 people from Dubai to Tel Aviv, was diverted to Tabuk in northwestern Saudi Arabia for an emergency landing.
Yaniv Hayun, one of the men who incapacitated the attacker, described running to the cockpit as the plane nosedived.
“We pulled the assailant out, I pulled him out. After I pulled him out we took control of the plane, I pulled up the yoke (steering control of the plane), I straightened the plane out a bit,” he said, talking to reporters upon his return to Israel on Wednesday.
Benjamin Netanyahu said the attacker was arrested in Saudi Arabia and was undergoing interrogation there.
The Israeli prime minister said that Israel was looking into whether the co-pilot had acted under anyone’s direction, warning in a video statement released by his office that whoever was involved would pay a “heavy price”.
Netanyahu on Thursday said that the co-pilot had undergone radical Islamist indoctrination and was clearly suicidal, but that so far a motive for his actions had not been established.
Pilots from countries without diplomatic relations with Israel are generally barred from flying there, raising questions over how he was allowed on the Flydubai flight.
The Israeli PM said: “Obviously there was a loophole here and we’re taking care of that among other things… with the full co-operation, I have to say, of the Emirati government, so we’re both interested in making sure this doesn’t happen again.”
Oman, unlike the UAE, does not have formal diplomatic ties with Israel. Asked whether there was evidence of Iranian involvement, Netanyahu said: “It’s too early to say.”
