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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has alleged that the co-pilot accused of attempting to bring down a flydubai passenger jet underwent "Islamist radical indoctrination," comments that came as authorities in the United Arab Emirates formally opened an investigation into the possibility of terrorist involvement in the dramatic mid-air incident.
The events unfolded on Wednesday when, according to accounts provided by officials and passengers, a co-pilot attacked the flight's captain and attempted to seize control of the aircraft, which was carrying a largely Israeli passenger manifest. The captain and several passengers ultimately overpowered the suspect, allowing the plane to make an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia before the travelers were returned home.
Netanyahu, speaking in an interview with the Fox News program "Fox & Friends," said the suspect had been subjected to extremist ideological influence, though he did not provide specific evidence or elaborate on the source of that assessment. The Israeli leader also said the co-pilot was being interrogated and described the man's behavior during the incident as indicating suicidal intent.
"The attacker, he calls out to the aircrew, 'Kill me, kill me,'" Netanyahu said, arguing that the remark made it "clear he was suicidal." He added that the suspect's background and possible radicalization remained under scrutiny.
The public remarks came as the UAE's chief prosecutor announced Thursday that an investigation had been launched, explicitly including the possibility of "terrorist activity or intent." The probe adds a formal legal dimension to an incident that has already generated intense international interest, given the nationalities of those on board and the location of the emergency diversion.
Saudi Arabia's interior ministry said the co-pilot had been transferred from the kingdom to the United Arab Emirates on Thursday morning, accompanied by an "Emirati security team." The ministry added that its initial investigation indicated the suspect had attacked the plane's captain. The handover suggests Emirati authorities will take the lead in questioning the suspect.
Netanyahu credited the flight's captain, Indian national Smit Machchhar, along with passengers, with preventing what officials have characterized as a potential catastrophe. According to the Israeli prime minister, the co-pilot stabbed the captain and then attempted to crash the aircraft. Israeli officials have labeled the episode "an attempted terrorist attack."
Passenger accounts painted a picture of chaos in the cabin as the crisis developed over Jordanian airspace. Miryam Shira Ohayon, one of the travelers on board, told reporters the plane was "pretty much out of control" as the situation escalated. She said the co-pilot tried to murder the pilot and effectively carry out a suicide attack on the aircraft. Others described rushing the cockpit and struggling for control after the plane suddenly plunged, losing roughly 17,000 feet of altitude within a single minute, according to data from the flight-tracking website Flightradar24.
The flight, operated by the Dubai-based carrier flydubai, was carrying 174 people, of whom 166 were Israeli, according to media reports. The airline has said all passengers were safe but that the reasons for the altercation remain unknown. The plane was diverted to Tabuk in Saudi Arabia, and the passengers were later flown home aboard another flydubai aircraft, touching down at Tel Aviv airport to what was described as a hero's welcome.
The incident has raised difficult questions about aviation security and pilot vetting, particularly for carriers operating routes involving countries without formal diplomatic ties to Israel. Netanyahu said he expected the United Arab Emirates to take the lead in the investigation but that Israel would join the probe. He noted that the co-pilot was an Omani national and questioned how the suspect had been permitted to work on a flight bound for Israel, given Israeli constraints requiring that pilots not come from countries lacking diplomatic relations with the Jewish state.
"We have constraints that say that you can't have pilots from countries that don't have diplomatic relations with Israel," Netanyahu said. "Obviously he was able to go through that. How do we make sure that we screen pilots in advance?" He added that the pilots who later collected the passengers from Saudi Arabia had undergone background checks, suggesting Israeli authorities were already reviewing their screening protocols.
Reaction among Israeli officials was swift and pointed. Far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir characterized the incident as a "jihadist" attack, while Defense Minister Israel Katz described it as "an attempted jihadist terror attack." The language reflects a broader political framing of the episode as a security threat rather than a case of individual malfunction or mental health crisis. Notably, however, in an earlier interview with CBS News, Netanyahu had not ruled out the possibility that mental health issues were to blame, a nuance that may become relevant as investigations proceed on multiple tracks.
Netanyahu also invoked the memory of the September 11, 2001 attacks, telling Fox News that a disaster of similar scale — with "bodies scattered in the desert" — had been averted. The comparison underscored the gravity with which Israeli officials view the incident, though independent confirmation of the suspect's motives and any organizational links has yet to emerge publicly.
The captain's role has drawn international praise. The Indian ambassador to the United Arab Emirates met with the wounded captain, and the embassy said he was in "good health and recovering well." Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi described Machchhar as a "HERO," saying his valor had helped save lives. The recognition adds a diplomatic dimension to the case, as India closely monitors the condition and treatment of one of its citizens credited with preventing a larger tragedy.
As the UAE investigation moves forward, key questions remain unanswered. Authorities have not publicly identified the suspect or detailed a possible motive, nor have they confirmed any affiliation with a militant organization. The dual-track nature of the inquiries — one focused on potential terrorism, the other potentially on the suspect's psychological state — means the full picture may take time to emerge. What is already clear is that the incident has prompted fresh scrutiny of international aviation security arrangements, particularly on routes where political sensitivities and operational realities intersect. For Israel, the episode has also revived debates about screening procedures for foreign flight crew, while for the passengers involved, the focus remains on the harrowing minutes when a routine journey nearly became a mass-casualty disaster.
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