Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday that the Omani copilot who stabbed the pilot on flydubai flight in an attempt to crash the plane carrying many Israelis “underwent Islamist radical indoctrination,” and was suicidal as he yelled, “Kill me, kill me,” after being overpowered.&nbsp;In an interview with Fox News, Netanyahu said that the copilot is being interrogated in Saudi Arabia.&nbsp;&nbsp;“We know that he underwent Islamist radical indoctrination,” Netanyahu said, adding that investigators would examine in the coming days whether there was any “Iran link” to the incident.&nbsp;During the incident, the attacker called out to the aircrew, ‘Kill me, kill me,’ making it clear that he was “suicidal,” he added.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Netanyahu: We know that the attacker pilot underwent “Islamist radical indoctrination.” <a href="https://t.co/KZ1VLpbYTE">pic.twitter.com/KZ1VLpbYTE</a>&mdash; Open Source Intel (@Osint613) <a href="https://x.com/Osint613/status/2105636313785639238?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 1, 2026</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.x.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

<h2>‘We’ll join interrogation and find out what happened’</h2> Netanyahu said Saudi Arabia is currently holding the copilot and will, “I assume, very quickly” transfer him to Dubai for interrogation. “He’s an Omani national… We’ll join the interrogation and find out what happened there exactly.”“I think it’s too early to say whether there was Iranian collusion,” the Israeli PM said, but added that he anticipates more definitive findings soon.Netanyahu said within the coming days, Israel will be able to conclusively say whether the copilot had any links to Iran. Referring to the thinking when the initial “hijacking alert” came and fighter jets were reportedly scrambled, Netanyahu said, “This may be the toughest situation that we can be in… where an unidentified passenger plane is heading towards Israel.” <h2>‘There were signs from Iran-backed groups…’</h2> Netanyahu also said there were “signs” from Iran-backed groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah of plans to carry out attacks in Israel but stressed that it was not yet known whether the flydubai incident was linked to those plans. The incident involved flydubai flight FZ 1073 from Dubai to Tel Aviv, when the Omani copilot allegedly stabbed Indian captain Smit Machchhar and seriously wounded him during the flight. Despite his injuries, Machchhar reportedly managed to alert authorities and open the cockpit door, allowing passengers and crew to overpower and pin down the attacker while foiling his dastardly plans. The attack put the lives of 180 passengers, mostly Israelis, at risk. Two off-duty flydubai pilots travelling as passengers then helped take control of the aircraft, which made an emergency landing at Saudi Arabia’s Tabuk airport. The passengers were later flown to Tel Aviv on another aircraft, while Machchhar was initially treated in Saudi Arabia and later airlifted to Abu Dhabi. <h2>Investigators still working to establish real motive behind attack</h2> Investigators are still working to establish the real and full motive behind the attack and determine how the co-pilot was able to carry it out aboard the flight. While authorities have not yet disclosed the co-pilot’s identity, he is reportedly an Omani national who was arrested after flydubai flight FZ1073 made an emergency landing in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia. Revealing that Israel would question the co-pilot and probe any possible Iran angle, Netanyahu told Fox News, “We’ll get to the root of this attacker, whether he had accomplices and whether Iran was behind it. I think we’ll find out very soon.”“We’ll be following and possibly also participating in this investigation,” he added.Netanyahu joined other members of the Israeli administration in describing the incident as a jihadist terror attack. Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz was among the first to call it “an attempted jihadist terror attack”.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said there were “signs” from Iran-backed groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah of plans to carry out attacks in Israel but stressed that it was not yet known whether the flydubai incident was linked to those plans.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday that the Omani copilot who stabbed the pilot on flydubai flight in an attempt to crash the plane carrying many Israelis “underwent Islamist radical indoctrination,” and was suicidal as he yelled, “Kill me, kill me,” after being overpowered. In an interview with Fox News, Netanyahu said that the copilot is being interrogated in Saudi Arabia. “We know that he underwent Islamist radical indoctrination,” Netanyahu said, adding that investigators would examine in the coming days whether there was any “Iran link” to the incident. During the incident, the attacker called out to the aircrew, ‘Kill me, kill me,’ making it clear that he was “suicidal,” he added.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said there were “signs” from Iran-backed groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah of plans to carry out attacks in Israel but stressed that it was not yet known whether the flydubai incident was linked to those plans.

Netanyahu says Omani flydubai copilot ‘underwent Islamist radical indoctrination’, was suicidal

The Omani co-pilot who allegedly attacked Captain Smit Machchhar with a crash axe in an attempt to hijack and crash the flydubai Flight FZ1073 carrying 174 passengers, mostly Israelis, has been described as a ‘religious extremist’ by another fellow pilot who spoke to an Israeli newspaper.&nbsp;&nbsp;Israel has called the incident an attempted “jihadist terrorist attack” and has directed its security and intelligence agencies, including Mossad and Shin Bet to launch an investigation.&nbsp;According to a report by The Times of Israel, the fellow pilot, speaking to Israel’s Channel 16, said the Omani national had joined flydubai around eight months ago and that he prayed excessively throughout the day and even refused to shake hands with women.&nbsp;However, these allegations from a fellow pilot do not establish the co-pilot’s motive by themselves and will require a complete investigation by the relevant authorities.&nbsp;<h2>After initial Saudi probe, co-pilot to be handed over to UAE</h2>&nbsp;Reports say the initial probe is being conducted by Saudi Arabia, where the aircraft made its emergency landing, after which the co-pilot is expected to be handed over to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for further investigation.&nbsp;Meanwhile, an Omani official reportedly confirmed to US-based media that the attacker, whose name has not been released, was born in Oman and holds Omani citizenship.Saudi officials have confirmed that both crew members were hospitalised following the emergency landing at Tabuk Airport.&nbsp;Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed on Thursday that the co-pilot is currently being questioned in Saudi Arabia.“He’ll be, I assume, moved very quickly to Dubai,” Netanyahu said, adding that Israeli authorities will “join the interrogation and find out what happened there exactly.”&nbsp;The UAE has separately ordered an investigation into the circumstances and motives behind the incident, including whether it was connected to terrorist activity or was planned in advance.&nbsp;&nbsp;Emirati authorities said that the UAE law applies to crimes committed aboard aircraft registered in the country, even when they occur outside its territory.

Israel called the incident an attempted jihadist terrorist attack and directed its security and intelligence agencies, including Mossad and Shin Bet to launch an investigation. The initial probe is being conducted by Saudi Arabia, after which the co-pilot will be handed over to the UAE.

The Omani co-pilot who allegedly attacked Captain Smit Machchhar with a crash axe in an attempt to hijack and crash the flydubai Flight FZ1073 carrying 174 passengers, mostly Israelis, has been described as a ‘religious extremist’ by another fellow pilot who spoke to an Israeli newspaper. Israel has called the incident an attempted “jihadist terrorist attack” and has directed its security and intelligence agencies, including Mossad and Shin Bet to launch an investigation. According to a report by The Times of Israel, the fellow pilot, speaking to Israel’s Channel 16, said the Omani national had joined flydubai around eight months ago and that he prayed excessively throughout the day and even refused to shake hands with women. However, these allegations from a fellow pilot do not establish the co-pilot’s motive by themselves and will require a complete investigation by the relevant authorities. After initial Saudi probe, co-pilot to be handed over to UAE Reports say the initial probe is being conducted by Saudi Arabia, where the aircraft made its emergency landing, after which the co-pilot is expected to be handed over to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for further investigation. Meanwhile, an Omani official reportedly confirmed to US-based media that the attacker, whose name has not been released, was born in Oman and holds Omani citizenship. Saudi officials have confirmed that both crew members were hospitalised following the emergency landing at Tabuk Airport. Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed on Thursday that the co-pilot is currently being questioned in Saudi Arabia. “He’ll be, I assume, moved very quickly to Dubai,” Netanyahu said, adding that Israeli authorities will “join the interrogation and find out what happened there exactly.” The UAE has separately ordered an investigation into the circumstances and motives behind the incident, including whether it was connected to terrorist activity or was planned in advance. Emirati authorities said that the UAE law applies to crimes committed aboard aircraft registered in the country, even when they occur outside its territory.

Israel called the incident an attempted jihadist terrorist attack and directed its security and intelligence agencies, including Mossad and Shin Bet to launch an investigation. The initial probe is being conducted by Saudi Arabia, after which the co-pilot will be handed over to the UAE.

Omani co-pilot showed extreme religious behaviour, refused to shake hands with women, reveals flydubai colleague

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Netanyahu says Omani flydubai copilot ‘underwent Islamist radical indoctrination’, was suicidal

Omani co-pilot showed extreme religious behaviour, reveals flydubai colleague