US President Donald Trump said he holds Iran responsible for the recent incident involving a Flydubai flight. The White House chief made the statement to journalists when asked about Tehran's possible involvement, according to infohub.kz.
"Yes, I do. Personally, I do," RIA Novosti quoted him as saying.
Earlier, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said the Flydubai flight incident was "clumsily staged" to blame Iran or other countries in the region.
Recall that the day before, media reports emerged that a Boeing 737 passenger plane had sent a distress signal while turning over Saudi Arabian territory. The aircraft transmitted code 7500, indicating hijacking or unlawful interference. Israeli Air Force fighter jets were scrambled toward the plane.
It later became known that the airliner landed in Saudi Arabia. Subsequently, Flydubai told Israeli television that a fight had broken out between pilots on board the Dubai–Tel Aviv flight.
Soon after, the first photos and videos from the plane appeared. The image shows a passenger who is believed to have struggled with the attacker. Authorities are investigating the theory that one of the pilots may have deliberately tried to crash the plane. It is believed that his actions were stopped by the co-pilot and Israeli passengers who fought him and prevented a disaster.
Media also reported that pilots from Ukraine and Russia were flying as passengers and took control of the Flydubai plane. Later it became known that the pilot injured in the attack by his colleague on board the Flydubai plane was Indian citizen Smit Machchhar.
Flydubai has suspended flights to and from Israel until the investigation into the incident is completed. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with a passenger on the Flydubai flight who helped subdue the pilot who started the fight.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz called the incident on board the Flydubai plane an attempted terrorist attack. Israel said the Flydubai pilot wanted to crash the plane at Tel Aviv airport.