A flydubai 737 Max 8 similar to the one used in today’s attempted hijacking. (Photo by By Anna Zvereva via Wikipedia)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
The flight, carrying more than 100 Israeli travelers, was diverted while flying over Jordanian airspace and made an emergency landing at Tabuk Airport in northwestern Saudi Arabia, an Israeli official told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. The passengers have since arrived in Israel.<\/p>\n
\u201cDuring the flight, as they were approaching Israel, one of the pilots stabbed the other pilot and apparently attempted to crash the plane with its passengers on board,\u201d Netanyahu said in an official video statement. <\/p>\n
He said he had spoken with one of the passengers, who had told him that he had managed to enter the cockpit with a member of the cabin crew. Together, they were able to restrain the pilot who had allegedly carried out the stabbing and was attempting to interfere with the aircraft\u2019s systems, Netanyahu said.<\/p>\n
He added that another crew member entered the cockpit and managed to land the plane. \u201cI salute these heroes, who saved many lives and prevented a major disaster.\u201d <\/p>\n
Netanyahu called the incident a \u201cserious security event\u201d and said that nearly all of the passengers on board were Israelis.<\/p>\n
Defense Minister Israel Katz described the incident as a \u201cjihadist terror attack.\u201d <\/p>\n
\u201cAccording to the initial information in our possession, the terrorist had one intention: to crash the plane with all its passengers on board,\u201d Katz said. He credited the passengers with subduing the attacker and allowing another crew member to regain control of the aircraft. <\/p>\n
Saudi authorities said the two pilots were taken to a hospital after sustaining injuries, according to international media reports. Netanyahu said that the pilot accused of carrying out the stabbing was \u201ccurrently being questioned by the Saudi authorities.\u201d<\/p>\n
Data from Flightradar24 showed the aircraft descending roughly 14,000 feet in less than 30 seconds during the incident. Videos recorded during the flight appeared to show chaos in the cabin, with passengers screaming and crying.<\/p>\n
The entire incident lasted about an hour and a half, according to accounts from passengers posted on social media and reports by Israeli media.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are on the flight from Dubai. We took control of the flight. There was an attacker with a knife who stabbed one of the pilots,\u201d passenger Itzhak Liber said in a Facebook video. \u201cA few of us jumped in and pulled him out of the cockpit. Everything is OK now. The terrorist is neutralized. There is a pilot who is seriously injured.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was tough. Everything is covered in blood,\u201d Liber added.<\/p>\n
Another passenger, with blood on his face, appeared in a video posted to social media and said the passengers were in the middle of a hijacking and had restrained the attacker as the plane prepared to land. In another video, several passengers said they were protecting the pilot.<\/p>\n
One of the passengers who helped subdue the attacker, Israeli Tzvika Manes, described the incident in an interview with Israel\u2019s Channel 12 as \u201ca horror movie\u201d and a \u201ctraumatic event.\u201d<\/p>\n
Manes said his wife had gone to the bathroom with his young daughter when she heard screaming and sounds of a struggle coming from the cockpit. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe saw the co-pilot stabbing the captain, and we pulled him out together with two other people who joined us,\u201d Manes said. \u201cWe reacted relatively quickly.\u201d<\/p>\n
Another pilot then entered the cockpit, Manes said, while a pilot who had been sitting among the passengers also joined them, and they managed to regain control of the aircraft and restrain the attacker using headphones. \u201cIt was not easy fighting with him,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The flight landed in Israel on Wednesday evening. Footage showed passengers cheering and singing \u201cAm Yisrael Chai\u201d (the people of Israel live) as they arrived back home.<\/p>\n
Netanyahu traveled to the airport to greet the passengers and met with Yaniv Hayun, who helped disarm the attacker in the cockpit. The prime minister hugged Hayun, who wore a T-shirt stained with the blood of the wounded pilot.<\/p>\n
Hayun, who was with his wife and two daughters, sat with Netanyahu and described the incident. The wounded pilot, he explained, had been able to unlock the cockpit door before collapsing, a critical move that allowed him and others to enter. <\/p>\n
As the first one in, Hayun said, he saw the attacker trying to disable the plane\u2019s controls to force a crash. Everything happened in seconds as the plane was beginning to dive, he said, pantomiming the descent with his hand.<\/p>\n
\u201cI grabbed him, placed him in a chockhold, tossed him\u201d aside and pushed the steering control up, Hayun said. Two others helped subdue the attacker.<\/p>\n
By chance, there were two pilots in the main cabin who then entered the cockpit, took control of the plane, stabilized it and landed it in Saudi Arabia.<\/p>\n
The first official U.S. reaction came from U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, who wrote on X that details were still unclear, but that Israeli passengers on board had helped subdue the co-pilot, who \u201capparently tried to take over the plane.\u201d Huckabee added that the incident \u201ccould have been a horrific\u201d one, but that everyone was safe.<\/p>\n
Flydubai has acknowledged that there was an \u201cincident\u201d that led to the diversion of the flight. It stressed that the plane landed safely and that all passengers were safe. <\/p>\n
UAE officials had not commented on the incident as of publication. Earlier this week, Netanyahu met with UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Abu Dhabi.<\/p>\n
Israel and Saudi Arabia do not have formal diplomatic relations, but the two countries maintain ties. <\/p>\n
This is not the first time a flight bound for Israel has made an unscheduled landing in Saudi Arabia. In September 2025, a flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv landed in Saudi Arabia after a passenger experienced a medical emergency. In August 2023, a flight from the Seychelles to Israel made an unscheduled landing in Jeddah because of a technical problem. In both cases, the passengers continued on to Israel without further incident.<\/p>\n
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said in a post on X that there had been an attempt to \u201ccrash\u201d the aircraft and \u201cmurder 180 Israelis.\u201d He called for Israel to hold accountable the \u201cstate or terrorist organization\u201d responsible for the incident. <\/p>\n
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir added that a \u201cterrorist\u201d had planned to crash the plane and harm Israelis, saying that \u201cterrorism is a devil with which no agreement should be reached.\u201d<\/p>\n
A flydubai spokesperson said that the airline had sent two replacement aircraft to Tabuk to aid the passengers and crew of the diverted flight.<\/p>\n
The airline added that the reasons and motives behind the incident remain unknown and are subject to a formal investigation, urging against \u201cpremature speculation\u201d while authorities gather the facts. The airline said its immediate priority was the safety and well-being of the passengers and crew involved.<\/p>\n
This story has been updated to include comments from Prime Minister Netanyahu and other details throughout. This is a developing story<\/em>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n
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