Iranian broadcaster Press TV, citing a "well-informed" regional source, claimed that Israel orchestrated the emergency aboard a Flydubai aircraft to draw the United States back into a conflict with Iran, according to infohub.kz.
On air, the channel asserted that an "absurd scenario" involving the seizure of an Emirati plane was carried out on Wednesday — three days after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived in the United Arab Emirates accompanied by several senior military and intelligence officials. According to the source, the plan was discussed and refined during that visit.
The channel's sources claim that during the UAE visit, a specific role was assigned to the Emirates in Israel's regional projects. Furthermore, they say Israel held multilateral talks with officials from several other Arab countries to devise a false-flag operation and blame Iran for it. This, it is alleged, was done to push US President Donald Trump into a new round of war with Iran.
The channel's interlocutor said Netanyahu fears his coalition may fail to win a parliamentary majority and plans to secure victory by drawing Trump into a conflict with Tehran.
Earlier, media reports said a Boeing 737 passenger plane had squawked an emergency code while turning over Saudi Arabia. It transmitted code 7500, indicating hijacking or unlawful interference. Israeli Air Force fighter jets were scrambled toward the aircraft.
It later emerged that the plane landed in Saudi Arabia. Subsequently, Flydubai told Israeli television that a fight had broken out between pilots on board a Dubai–Tel Aviv flight.
Soon, the first photos and videos from the plane appeared. One image shows a passenger who is believed to have struggled with the attacker. Authorities are investigating the possibility that one of the pilots may have deliberately tried to crash the plane. It is believed that the co-pilot and Israeli passengers intervened, grappling with him and preventing a disaster.
Media also reported that pilots from Ukraine and Russia were flying as passengers and took over the controls of the Flydubai aircraft. Later it became known that the pilot injured when his colleague attacked him aboard the Flydubai plane was Indian citizen Smit Machchhar.
Flydubai suspended flights to and from Israel until the investigation into the incident is completed. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with the Flydubai passenger who helped subdue the pilot who started the fight. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz called the incident aboard the Flydubai plane an attempted terrorist attack.