"Kill Me, Kill Me": Netanyahu Says Omani Co-Pilot Was Suicidal, Radicalised

A flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv dropped thousands of feet in a matter of minutes on Wednesday. Inside the cabin, the captain was bleeding heavily, and passengers and crew were left to deal with a crisis no one had prepared for. A day later, investigators are still trying to understand what drove the co-pilot to attack the man he was flying with.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Fox News the co-pilot had undergone Islamist radicalisation. "We know that he underwent Islamist radical indoctrination," he said. He added that this came from the man's "personal information", but gave no further details. "That appears to be something we're gathering from his personal information," he said.

Netanyahu said the co-pilot had called out to the aircrew after being pinned down. He said the man shouted, "Kill me, kill me." "It's clear he was suicidal, that's not a question," Netanyahu said, adding that it "looks very likely" the man had meant to bring the plane down.

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"If you couple that with what I just told you about the Islamist tendencies, that radicalisation that are found in his background, I think that'll give us a pretty good clue," he said. "But again, I don't make conclusions yet. But that's the indications we have now."

According to witnesses and officials, the co-pilot stabbed the captain, Capt. Smit Machchhar, an Indian citizen who survived. The plane then plunged thousands of feet before being brought back under control. Passengers and crew members rushed to the cockpit to stop the attack.

Witnesses said Israeli passengers helped to overpower the attacker, while a dentist on board gave first aid to the captain. The dentist said Machchhar had been bleeding heavily. Two reserve pilots on the flight were credited with steadying the aircraft and landing it safely at Tabuk airport in Saudi Arabia.

Where The Investigation Stands

The co-pilot has not been named. Israeli officials say he is an Omani citizen. He was moved to Abu Dhabi from Saudi Arabia, where he was detained. "And we'll be following, and possibly also participating in this investigation," he said.

The government of the United Arab Emirates said on Thursday that it would lead the investigation into whether the incident was linked to terrorism. Investigators have yet to establish whether the co-pilot acted alone, what his motives were, and whether he meant to crash the plane or take control of it and land in a third country.

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Passengers and officials have said the captain was "stabbed". No details of the weapon have been released, although Netanyahu said the captain was stabbed or hit with an axe.

Question Over Security Checks

A key question for Israel is how the suspect appears to have cleared any vetting. Oman and Israel do not have formal diplomatic relations, and the Jerusalem Post reported that the attacker should not have been allowed to fly the Israel-bound plane.

An Israeli security official told CNN that the Shin Bet, Israel's internal security agency, is supposed to vet all airline staff flying into Israel from the UAE. This is part of a side security understanding linked to the aviation agreements between the two countries. The official said it is not yet known whether the Shin Bet failed to vet the suspect, or whether it checked him and approved him to fly the plane.

Captain Machchhar was praised by both Netanyahu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.