Hijacker of an EgyptAir passenger aircraft surrendered before the authorities as the plane flying from Alexandria to Cairo which was forced to land in Cyprus’ Larnaca airport here on Tuesday. However, the passengers and crew members were freed unharmed but the motives behind the mystery remained undisclosed as yet.
Eighty-one people, including 21 foreigners and 15 crew, were onboard the Airbus 320 flight when it took off, Egypt’s Civil Aviation Ministry said in a statement.
Conflicting theories emerged about the hijacker’s motives, with Cypriot officials saying early on the incident did not appear related to terrorism but the Cypriot state broadcaster saying he had demanded the release of women prisoners in Egypt, foreign media reported.
Egyptian Prime Minister Sherif Ismail had said the hijacker was an Egyptian national but his motives were unclear.
Earlier, Egypt’s Civil Aviation Ministry said the plane’s pilot, Omar al-Gammal, had informed authorities that he was threatened by a passenger who claimed to be wearing a suicide explosives belt and forced him to divert the plane to Larnaca.
