Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was quick to seize the opportunity to associate himself with the heroics of Israelis who helped stop a Flydubai co-pilot from crashing a plane bound for Tel Aviv.
As more details emerge about the dramatic events aboard Flight FZ1073 from Dubai, the incident risks backfiring on him as it becomes a key political battleground just three weeks before a tight Israeli election. The attempted hijacker, Hamam al-Hammami, 29, is a citizen of Oman — a country that doesn’t have diplomatic relations with Israel — and had a history of engaging with radical views that saw him dismissed from a previous job, it was reported.
As Israel marks the third anniversary of one of its biggest security failures, the Hamas attack of Oct. 7, 2023, opposition leaders and a broad array of commentators are arguing that there are similarities between the two events.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.