Symbolic imageIsraeli agencies trade blame after flydubai co-pilot's attack
An Omani co-pilot attacked the captain of a flydubai flight to Tel Aviv, and Israeli passengers overpowered him. Israeli agencies now dispute who should have vetted him.
The UAE attorney general said on Saturday that the 29-year-old Omani co-pilot planned a "terrorist act" and attacked the captain with the cockpit crash axe on flight FZ1073 on Wednesday, 30 September. Israeli passengers subdued him, and standby pilots landed the plane with 182 people aboard in Saudi Arabia. Oman reportedly barred him from flying over extremism concerns, and Australian police are probing his links to the country.
Who should have vetted him?
The Shin Bet says the Transport Ministry is responsible for checking foreign flights. Transport Minister Miri Regev says security officials are responsible and points to the Mossad. The UAE says it sent crew and passenger lists to Israel and received no objection, and Netanyahu spoke of a "gap" in the system.
Cockpit briefly empty
Passenger Tal told the Jerusalem Post that for a time nobody was in the cockpit, and that he shook two off-duty pilots into taking control. The account cannot be independently confirmed.
Iran link unproven
An Emirati source told the Jerusalem Post that an Iranian connection is among the hypotheses examined. Iran denies any role, and Netanyahu says it is too early to say. Israeli authorities reportedly assume the man acted alone.