US president Donald Trump has claimed that Iran may be linked to the FlyDubai co-pilot who tried to crash an Israel-bound plane after stabbing the flight’s caption
Investigators are working to determine why the Omani co-pilot stabbed the Indian captain, causing the plane to plummet before others on board landed it in Saudi Arabia.
Trump was asked by reporters at the White House whether he had been briefed about any links between the pilot behind the attack and Tehran.
“I would say the answer, based on what I’m hearing, is yes, but we’re working on it right now,” Trump said. He did not offer details.
Asked if the US would retaliate against Tehran if it was behind the attack, Trump said: “Oh they’ll be hit, very hard, don’t worry.”
“You just ask them,” he added. “They know what happened. They’ll be hit very hard.”
Passengers on the FlyDubai plane – which was carrying 174 people, mostly Israelis, from the United Arab Emirates to Tel Aviv – have described how the bloodied Indian captain managed to open the cockpit door to let them in before they grappled with the co-pilot and stabilised a descent so sharp that the plane’s rudder was torn away.
Asaf Rajuan, who was among those who intervened, said in a statement shared by Israel’s presidency: “We felt helpless, suspended in mid-air, and I didn’t know who to turn to. But it was all instinct to survive.”
FlyDubai has announced that it will suspend flights between Dubai and Israel following the incident. Photograph: Ohad Zwigenberg/AP
A regional official briefed on the investigation said the suspect, an Omani citizen, was under arrest and confirmed that Saudi authorities were working with countries, including Israel, to try to determine a motive.
He said the UAE, the United States and Oman were also involved.
“All possible scenarios, from terrorism to mental disorders, are being looked into. Nothing is ruled out for now,” said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu claimed the attacker underwent Islamist indoctrination but did not give details.
‘We’ll get to the bottom of things,’ said Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu said. Photograph: Julia Nikhinson/AP
Asked who helped radicalise the man, the prime minister said he did not know and that Israel was co-operating with the UAE’s investigation.
“We’ll get to the bottom of things,” he told Fox News channel’s Fox And Friends.
Video shot inside the plane by Shota Musayev, a dentist who treated the captain, shows the co-pilot on his knees, with his hands tied behind his back.
The co-pilot’s name has not been released, and his condition was not known.
Captain Smit Machchhar, widely praised as one of the heroes of the flight, was reportedly in stable condition, the Indian Embassy in Saudi Arabia said overnight.
Israeli intelligence and security officials were in Saudi Arabia to help investigate the co-pilot, according to another regional official.
Israel has requested that the co-pilot be sent to Israel for the investigation, though it is unclear if that request will be granted, the official said.
Saudi Arabia does not have formal diplomatic ties with Israel, but the countries have long co-operated on security and intelligence matters through alternative channels.
[ Flydubai hijacking attempt could aid Netanyahu’s re-election bidOpens in new window ]
The UAE government said its own investigation team had begun looking into the attack and “whether it was linked to any terrorist purpose”, noting its authorities have jurisdiction because the plane is registered there and UAE law applies to crimes committed on board.
Asked if there is any indication of Iranian involvement, Netanyahu told Fox News “it’s too early to say”.
Netanyahu said he also spoke with the UAE’s president, sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who agreed that Israel would join the interrogation of the suspect.
Trump told reporters at the White House that he and Netanyahu discussed the incident “at length” by phone and it seemed as though the co-pilot “was perhaps a terrorist or perhaps a whack job”.
Oman’s government has not commented.
Netanyahu had warned in recent days of heightened security threats, though he told CNN that Israel had received no specific warning.
Israel is a week away from the anniversary of the Hamas-led attack on October 7th, 2023, which has triggered the war in Gaza – and weeks away from an election. – AP