Doron Spielman, a spokesperson for the Israeli prime minister’s workplace, advised Reuters the incident was not believed to have been a hijacking, describing it as a “totally different incident”.
An airline spokesperson stated the flydubai flight skilled an “incident” en path to Tel Aviv and diverted to Tabuk, the place it landed safely. All passengers had been secure and accounted for, the spokesperson stated, with out offering any additional particulars.
An Israeli official, talking on the situation of anonymity, advised Reuters the pilots had transmitted the emergency indicators after getting right into a bodily altercation with one another.
It was not instantly clear if both pilot had deliberately transmitted the indicators.
Yasmin Abu Kasis stated her daughter Miriam, who was among the many passengers on the flight, had advised her that she had heard screaming and {that a} man holding a knife had compelled one of many pilots onto the ground, and that there was blood all over the place.
Israeli media revealed a photograph purportedly taken from contained in the aircraft, which appeared to indicate a passenger’s blood-soaked shirt. Reuters couldn’t instantly confirm the picture.
In a press release, the Israeli prime minister’s workplace stated the state of affairs was “below management” and that each one measures had been being taken to deliver the Israeli passengers again to Israel.
Flydubai operates day by day return flights between Dubai and Tel Aviv, a route that’s common amongst Israeli nationals. The flight path usually makes use of airspace over Saudi Arabia and Jordan.
It’s not the primary time a flight between Israel and the UAE has landed in Saudi Arabia. A flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv made an emergency touchdown in Riyadh in September 2025 as a result of a medical incident, Israeli media reported on the time.
