Shin Bet to Interrogate Passengers at Ben Gurion Following Aviation Incident
Shin Bet investigators will interrogate passengers arriving at Ben Gurion Airport following a security incident involving a co-pilot. Israel seeks jurisdiction while stranded passengers in Saudi Arabia await evacuation.
ISA (Shin Bet) investigators will wait for flight passengers at Ben Gurion Airport with the goal of questioning them as close to landing time as possible. Every passenger will undergo interrogation, and the ISA, in coordination with the Mossad, has prepared a variety of questions to clarify the picture.
Investigators are trying to understand what led the co-pilot to act. "Did he act as a lone wolf? Did he carry out prior planning? Or is this a move that occurred near or during the flight?" a security official familiar with the investigation says, adding, "We are checking if a terrorist organization or state stands behind the terrorist. This is not clear to us at the moment."
According to the security official: "From the investigation standpoint, all directions are open. We are examining two directions regarding the outcome the co-pilot aimed for, whether he intended to crash the plane with its 160 Israeli passengers or intended to land in a third country."
The defense establishment estimates that Saudi Arabia will soon allow Mossad personnel to interrogate the pilot. Israel insists on conducting the investigation. Under aviation conventions, Saudi Arabia is defined for the event as the host state. Several states by law have jurisdiction to investigate and prosecute the perpetrator: the United Arab Emirates, where the aircraft is registered, and each state whose citizens were on board. In this case, Israel has priority since the majority of passengers are Israeli citizens.
Security officials speaking to Reuters reported that Saudi Arabia rejected an Israeli request to allow Israeli planes to arrive and collect the passengers. Uri, who was waiting for a flight in Saudi Arabia, told Walla that he fears boarding a Flydubai flight: "I am not willing to board a Flydubai flight unless there is no choice. We were told that anyone who takes photos will not fly and will stay here for checks. We are afraid." He added that currently passengers have been told there is no approval for the Israeli Air Force to land at the location.
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