U.A.E. announces investigation into FlyDubai incident

Assaf Regavim, who filmed a video from inside the cabin of the FlyDubai flight that was widely circulated online, is embraced upon arrival at Ben Gurion Airport on Wednesday evening near Tel Aviv. (Erik Marmor/Getty Images)Social SharingThe United Arab Emirates prosecutor general has ordered an investigation into the ‌incident aboard FlyDubai Flight FZ1073 from Dubai to Tel Aviv, ​which was diverted ​and landed in Saudi Arabia after an altercation ​in the cockpit, the state news agency ‌reported Thursday.

The U.A.E. has started investigations that are seeking to establish the circumstances and motives, and to determine "whether the incident was linked to any terrorist activity or ⁠purpose, or involved prior planning or direction," the state news agency reported.

Emirati judicial authorities have jurisdiction over the incident because the aircraft is registered in the U.A.E. and flies under its flag, the statement said, adding that U.A.E. law applies to crimes committed on board, even if they occur outside the country's ‌territory.

Questions loomed over the motives and background of a co-pilot who stabbed the captain of a passenger jet. Israel officials have said it was an apparent attempt to crash the plane with more than 170 people on board.

One question surrounding this incident is what was used in the attack, and if it was a knife, how a pilot could transport it onto the aircraft without being detected.

Disaster was averted on Wednesday's FlyDubai flight after the wounded captain managed to unlock the cockpit door, allowing passengers to subdue the attacker and a reserve crew that had been on board to land the plane in Saudi Arabia.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ​said the attacker was being investigated in Saudi Arabia, where the plane landed at Tabuk ​airport, and that he believed he would be taken to the United Arab Emirates.

"We'll be following and possibly also participating in this investigation," Netanyahu said in an interview with Fox News.

Saudi Arabia has issued no statements on its investigations.

Saudi Arabia's Tabuk airport said Wednesday that both pilots had been ​hospitalized after sustaining injuries.

FlyDubai said Wednesday that the underlying reasons for the event remained unknown and warned against "premature speculation."

Indian pilot Smit Machchhar, who the leaders of Israel and India hailed as a hero for saving passengers after he was stabbed by his colleague in an alleged attempt to crash a FlyDubai plane on Wednesday, is shown in this undated handout photo. (Israel Foreign Ministry/Reuters)Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said Wednesday that Israel's preliminary information indicated that the co-pilot aimed to crash the plane, describing him as a terrorist, though Netanyahu only described it as "a serious security incident."

The flight plunged nearly 4,300 metres in less than 30 seconds as it flew over Saudi Arabia before the passengers and crew managed to subdue the attacker and land the plane.

Netanyahu and Indian Prime ⁠Minister Narendra ⁠Modi have hailed the Flight FZ1073 captain and Indian ​national Smit Machchhar as a hero. India's ambassador to the U.A.E. met Machchhar's family and briefed him on his health and recovery, the Indian Consulate in the ​U.A.E. said.

Israel has also lauded passengers who subdued the attacker.

Israeli passenger Yaniv Hayoun, with blood stains on his shirt, is surrounded by reporters and others Wednesday night at Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv. (Tomer Appelbaum/The Associated Press)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.

U.A.E. warned Netanyahu of major Hamas operation days before Oct. 7 attack: Israeli newspaper

The incident heightened security fears in Israel weeks before Israelis vote in the first election since ⁠the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, attacks, with Israel's security figuring prominently in the campaigning.

The U.S. and Israel launched strikes against Iran in February, in a conflict ⁠that quickly spread to the Gulf and Lebanon, where Israel has been fighting Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah.