A Tel Aviv-bound jet made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia after a violent cockpit incident
Dubai-based airline Flydubai has suspended flights to and from Israel after a Tel Aviv-bound passenger jet was diverted and made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia following an apparent hijacking attempt.
Direct air travel has been one of the most visible signs of normalized relations between Israel and the UAE since the countries signed the US-brokered Abraham Accords in 2020.
“Following the incident involving flight FZ 1073 on 30 September, and in coordination with the relevant authorities, Flydubai flights to and from Israel will be suspended while the investigation continues,” the airline said in a statement on Wednesday.
“The safety and wellbeing of our passengers, crew and operations remain our highest priority. This temporary suspension will allow the relevant authorities to continue their work and establish all the facts surrounding the incident,” Flydubai added.
The UAE’s aviation regulator, the General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA), acknowledged that a “security incident” aboard the aircraft forced the plane, which was traveling from Dubai International Airport to Ben Gurion International Airport, to land in Tabuk in northwestern Saudi Arabia.
According to Israeli officials and passengers, most of whom were Israeli nationals, a fight broke out in the cockpit during which the co-pilot stabbed the captain, causing the plane to plunge. Passengers and crew members eventually subdued the assailant, after which the aircraft landed safely with no fatalities among the 174 people on board. The captain was reportedly seriously injured during the altercation.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the attacker had apparently planned to crash the plane and that the actions of the captain and passengers prevented “a 9/11 disaster.”
US President Donald Trump, who discussed the incident with Netanyahu by phone, suggested that the co-pilot was “perhaps a terrorist, or perhaps a whack-job.”
Emirati-Israeli relations have faced growing strains since the start of the Gaza war in 2023, even as the two countries maintained diplomatic, commercial and security ties.
Regional tensions escalated further after the US and Israel launched their war against Iran in late February. Tehran retaliated by firing thousands of missiles and drones at the UAE, which hosts US military forces.
Netanyahu visited the UAE on Sunday for talks with President Mohamed bin Zayed on bilateral ties and the war with Iran. Tehran condemned the visit and warned of “highly dangerous consequences,” arguing that Netanyahu’s presence threatened regional peace and security.
