Omani co-pilot prayed excessively, wouldn't shake hands with women: Fellow pilot
An Omani co-pilot accused of attacking the Indian Captain Smit Machchhar and attempting to crash flydubai Flight FZ1073 is being described by a fellow pilot as a "religious extremist." Israel has called the incident an attempted "jihadist terrorist attack" and has tasked its security and intelligence agencies, including Mossad and Shin Bet launch an investigation, according to Israel-based Ynet news.
According to Tel Aviv-based The Times of Israel, the fellow pilot, speaking to Israel's Channel 16, said the Omani national had joined flydubai only about eight months ago, and he prayed excessively throughout the day and refused to shake hands with women. These, however, are allegations from a fellow pilot and do not, by themselves, establish the co-pilot's motive. That will require a complete investigation by the relevant authorities.
An Omani official confirmed to the US-based news outlet, CBS News that the attacker, whose name has not been released, was born in Oman and holds Omani citizenship.
The Omani co-pilot had been employed by the carrier for only nine months, Israel Hayom newspaper reported on Thursday. Saudi officials have confirmed that both crew members were hospitalised following the emergency landing at Tabuk Airport.
The initial probe into the Omani co-pilot will be conducted by Saudi Arabia, where the aircraft made its emergency landing, after which he is expected to be handed over to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for further investigation, according to The Times of Israel.
This was confirmed by Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu, who told CBS News on Thursday that he is currently being questioned in Saudi Arabia.
"He'll be, I assume, moved very quickly to Dubai," Netanyahu told CBS News, adding that Israeli authorities will "join the interrogation and find out what happened there exactly."
A senior Israeli official told CBS News on Thursday that UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan personally told Netanyahu on Wednesday that he expected Saudi authorities to transfer the pilot to the UAE for questioning.
The UAE has separately ordered an investigation into the circumstances and motives behind the incident, including whether it was connected to terrorist activity or was planned in advance. Emirati authorities told the newspaper that the UAE law applies to crimes committed aboard aircraft registered in the country, even when they occur outside its territory.- Ends
