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Hijacker arrested, says he wants 'to live in Cyprus with wife'

[CONSTANTLY UPDATED] Hijacker arrested as Larnaca airport closed and scheduled flights diverted elsewhere • EgyptAir hijacker demands asylum in Cyprus, state media report • Hijacker reportedly asks for the release of prisoners in Egypt

Last updated on 29 March 2016, 12:43pm
2 min read

A man claiming to be wearing an explosive vest hijacked an EgyptAir plane, forcing it to land in Cyprus was arrested, according to the Cypriot government.

“It’s over,” the Cypriot Foreign Ministry announced at 2:41 pm local time.

Negotiations with the hijacker resulted in the release of all aboard the aircraft except three passengers, the pilot, co-pilot and three cabin crew members, EgyptAir confirmed at 12.40pm.

Egypt's state television initially named the hijacking suspect as Ibrahim Samaha but authorities later corrected the name of the hijacker to Seif El Din Mustafa.

Cypriot media report that the the hijacker has handed over a letter saying he wants to live in Cyprus with his wife.

In a reply during a press conference to a reporter's question about whether the hijacker was motivated by romance, Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades laughed and said: "Always there is a woman involved."

According to reports, he is demanding asylum while Reuters is now reporting that he has demanded some female prisoners in Egypt be freed. 

The plane, flight MS181, had taken off from the Mediterranean coastal city of Alexandria and was destined for the capital of Cairo, but an armed passenger threatened to blow up the plane and forced the pilot to change course toward Cyprus.

Egypt's civil aviation ministry said that the flight's captain, Amr al-Gamal, reported that one of the passengers claimed to have an explosive belt and forced the aircraft to land in Cyprus.

A Tweet by EgyptAir reads: "Negotiations with hijacker resulted in the release of all the passengers except cabin crew and five foreigners".

An EgyptAir domestic flight traveling from Alexandria to Cairo has been hijacked, according to the airline's spokeswoman.

A Cyprus official has told the Associated Press that a bomb is suspected on board the hijacked Egypt plane, which has landed at Larnaca airport.

The hijackers asked for the flight to land in Cyprus, said the spokeswoman, who asked not to be identified in line with company policy.

The island's state broadcaster reported that the plane landed at Larnaca airport less than an hour after takeoff.

It added that Larnaca airport has since been closed and scheduled flights diverted elsewhere.

CNN Greece reported that the A320 aircraft had taken off from Alexandria at 8 a.m. local time with 81 passengers aboard.

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