The flydubai co-pilot accused of stabbing the captain and trying to hijack an Israel-bound flight was previously banned from flying by Oman over fears he’d adopted radical ideological views, according to a new report.
Despite the ban, the aviator, identified only as an Omani national, was hired by the Dubai-based airline, allowing him to fly the sensitive route connecting the United Arab Emirates and Israel, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
It was not immediately clear if Oman shared concerns about the pilot’s radicalization with other countries or airlines, according to the publication.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Friday that “the attacker underwent Islamist radicalization,” and that “he intended to crash the plane with all its passengers on board.”
“We are now investigating whether he was sent, and whoever sent him will pay a very heavy price,” Netanyahu said in the statement.
Here’s the latest on the Israel-bound plane suspected terror attack:
Flight 1073 from Dubai to Tel Aviv was carrying 182 people on Wednesday when the Omani co-pilot allegedly launched the attack, causing the plane to plummet 18,000 feet in a terrifying nosedive.
The captain, Smit Machchhar, staved off his attacker, allowing heroic passengers and off-duty pilot to leap into action and gain control of the out-of-control flight.
The co-pilot, who Israel’s defense minister called “a jihadist terrorist attack” Wednesday, had worked for flydubai for less than a year.
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