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One pilot 'stabbed the other' and 'apparently tried to crash' Israel-bound plane, Netanyahu says
- On Wednesday, September 30, 2026, Flydubai flight FZ1073 from Dubai to Tel Aviv diverted to Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, after a violent cockpit incident involving a stabbing and sudden altitude loss.
- Israeli officials allege an Omani co-pilot stabbed Captain Smit Machchhar, an Indian national, and attempted to crash the aircraft, though Flydubai describes the event as an 'altercation' between pilots.
- Flightradar24 data shows the Boeing 737 MAX 8 dropped from 33,000 feet to 17,000 feet while transmitting emergency codes 7700 and 7500, before passengers and crew intervened to neutralize the attacker.
- Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reported that Saudi authorities arrested the co-pilot, while injured pilots were hospitalized and Israeli warplanes briefly scrambled over hijacking fears.
- Authorities are increasing security scrutiny for Israel-bound flights, while pragmatic aviation cooperation between Israel and Saudi Arabia—which lack formal diplomatic ties—enabled the emergency landing.
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Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets with Yaniv Hayoun, the passenger who burst into the cockpit on the flight from Dubai to Israel, at Ben-Gurion International Airport southeast of Tel Aviv on Sept. 30, 2026. (Kobi Gideon/GPO)
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Coverage Details
Total News Sources797
Leaning Left99Leaning Right146Center120Last UpdatedBias Distribution40% Right
Bias Distribution
- 40% of the sources lean Right
40% Right
L 27%
C 33%
R 40%
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