The investigation is still underway, but despite U.S. President Donald Trump saying he had heard that the Omani co-pilot who attacked the captain of the Flydubai flight was linked to Iran, a senior Israeli official said Thursday that investigators have so far ruled out an apparent connection to the Islamic Republic.
Meanwhile, the co-pilot suspected of trying to crash the Flydubai flight was transferred Thursday from Saudi Arabia to the United Arab Emirates. Indian captain Smit Machchhar, whom he attacked in the cockpit, was also transferred to the UAE for further treatment.
The Indian pilot receives treatment as the Omani co-pilot lies restrained
The UAE has meanwhile conveyed angry messages to Israel over what Emirati officials viewed as an overly definitive Israeli conclusion that the co-pilot acted out of terrorist motives aimed at undermining the Abraham Accords before the investigation had been completed.
According to an Israeli official, the word “terror” is particularly sensitive for the Emiratis because it can suggest a lack of control. Abu Dhabi therefore prefers not to get ahead of the investigation and is for now taking a cautious approach to determining the Omani pilot’s motive.
A senior Israeli official said the pilot most likely acted alone. After Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Fox News that “we know that the attacker pilot underwent Islamist radical indoctrination,” the official said Israel was examining the suspect’s social media activity.
At the same time, the assessment in Israel is strengthening that the motive was nationalist and religious rather than an attempted suicide unrelated to terrorism.
Israel asked to be involved as an observer in the investigation of the pilot in Saudi Arabia and the UAE, but according to the Hebrew report, Riyadh did not agree. “The Saudis are doing everything possible not to involve Israel in the investigation,” an Israeli official said.
Now that the co-pilot has been transferred to the UAE, Israeli officials are relying on close ties and cooperation with Abu Dhabi in hopes of becoming as involved as possible in the investigation, even if only in an observer capacity.
Indian captain Smit Machchhar, who fought the co-pilot after being attacked and stabbed in the cockpit before Israeli passengers intervened, was transferred to the UAE after being hospitalized in Saudi Arabia.
According to the Israeli report, he was apparently stabbed with an emergency axe kept in the cockpit. The Gujarat government announced that it would honor Machchhar with the Vishisht Gujarat Garima Award. Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel praised his courage, saying his actions had saved the passengers’ lives.
Netanyahu: There was a ‘loophole’
In an interview with Fox News, Netanyahu acknowledged that the Omani co-pilot had apparently exploited a loophole in rules governing flights to Israel.
Netanyahu said restrictions exist barring pilots from countries without diplomatic relations with Israel from operating such flights, but that the Omani co-pilot had apparently managed to get around them.
“The first thing is you want a background check on pilots,” Netanyahu said. “Even if you have metal detectors, they’re usually for the passengers, and it’s quite possible that pilots just don’t go through that. So obviously, that’s a loophole that has to be corrected.”
Netanyahu also said Israel was receiving “full cooperation” from the UAE government and that both sides wanted to ensure such an incident did not happen again.
He warned that further attempts could occur, saying Israel had indications that Iran and its proxies were seeking to carry out attacks against Israel and Israelis during the election period, and urged Israelis to remain especially vigilant.
Hours later, Trump was asked at the White House whether the pilot had any connection to Iran.
“I would say the answer, based on what I’m hearing, is yes, but we’re working on it right now,” Trump said.
Asked whether the United States would retaliate if Iran were found responsible, Trump replied: “Oh they’ll be hit, very hard, don’t worry.”
For now, however, the senior Israeli official said investigators had ruled out a suspected Iranian connection.
‘I never dreamed Trump would talk about me’
Yaniv Hayun, who helped stabilize the Flydubai aircraft and was later praised by Trump, said he was still processing the drama aboard the flight and his unexpected status as one of its heroes.
“We should celebrate a birthday on this day. All the passengers said, ‘We were born again,’” Hayun said Thursday at his home in Ness Ziona after learning that he would receive a municipal heroism award for his actions.
Later Thursday, Hayun met Netanyahu for a second time. The prime minister hosted several other passengers involved in stopping the attack, including Dr. Shota Musaev, his wife Sigalit and Or Fardilov.
“The whole world sees Israeli heroism,” Netanyahu told them. He also announced that they would light a torch honoring civilian heroism at Israel’s next Independence Day ceremony, although the event is still about six months away.
Yaniv Hayun
(Photo:Yariv Katz)
During the meeting, the passengers gave additional details about the moments inside the aircraft.
Musayev, who treated the badly wounded captain, said: “I saw that the terrorist was injured. On the floor, I saw a lot of blood. It was the pilot’s blood. We don’t know, maybe he was also injured, the terrorist, but not like the pilot. Everything was cut, everything, his hands, his head. Really deep wounds.”
Musayev said he then focused mainly on stopping the bleeding and continuously checking the captain’s pulse and condition.
The passengers said the most dramatic moments lasted only seconds.
“In the end, I came up with the idea of tying him with the headphone cord, and we tied him because we had no other choice,” Musayev said. “Only afterward did they bring us zip ties. That was the only thing in my head, somehow tie him up so he wouldn’t start going wild.”
Hayun said the Omani co-pilot declared that “he had failed in his mission and preferred to die,” while Fardilov said he and the others focused on “holding the situation” under control.
Hayun also responded to Trump’s colorful description of him as “an Israeli plumber who had never flown a plane” but managed to help save the aircraft.
“I’m an upgraded plumber,” Hayun said. “He wasn’t wrong. I don’t work at NASA and I don’t deal with space. I deal with stinking pipes, and he was right. It didn’t offend me.”
Hayun said all he wanted now was to return to normal life. “In my dreams I never thought Trump would talk about me and refer to what I did, and I actually like his humor,” he said. “It was amusing how he described it. I’m not exactly Bruce Lee. I did manage to overpower the terrorist with several other Israelis, pull him backward in a chokehold, and that’s the most important thing.”
Presidential Medal for the flight heroes
President Isaac Herzog spoke Thursday with Hayun and three other Israelis who displayed exceptional bravery aboard the flight, Tzvika Mans, Assaf Rajuan and Dr. Shota Musayev, and told them he intended to recommend all four for the Presidential Medal for Civilian Valor.
The President’s Residence said the Israelis “acted quickly and decisively,” alongside the Indian captain who fought the co-pilot and managed to open the cockpit door.
“At a moment when the lives of so many people were in danger, you acted without hesitation, with courage, resourcefulness and extraordinary mutual responsibility,” Herzog told them. “You risked yourselves to save others and prevented a grave disaster.”
“The entire world saw the beautiful and courageous face of Israeli society,” he added. “I am proud of you and thank you on behalf of the State of Israel. I intend to bring the story of your heroism before the advisory committee for the Presidential Medal for Civilian Valor and recommend that you receive the award.” Tali Mans, Tzvika Mans’ wife, was later also recommended by Herzog for the medal.
According to the President’s Residence, testimony showed that Tali played a significant role in confronting the incident and saving passengers. After hearing violence and commotion from the cockpit, she was the first to alert other passengers and call for help, prompting those who eventually intervened and subdued the attacker.
Even after he had been restrained, the statement said, she continued to act calmly, calling pilots who were in the rear section of the aircraft to come forward and help restore control of the plane.