A man in a suicide bomb vest hijacked an EgyptAir plane Tuesday flying from Alexandria to Cairo with over 60 people on board. The hijacker forced the plane to land in Cyprus, and during initial negotiations, released all on board except the crew and four foreign nationals.
The man, identified as Seif El Din Mustafa, has surrendered to police and been captured, with his motives muddled since he wasn’t consistent with his demands during negotiations. But officials are leaning towards the theory that he was a lonely man trying to get back with his ex-wife.
One of his demands was being allowed to talk to her, which authorities acquiesced to. Others included being flown to Turkey, which was rejected.
“At some moments he asked to meet with a representative of the European Union and at other points he asked to go to another airport but there was nothing specific,” Egyptian prime minister Sherif Ismail said.
His behaviour, which was deemed strange, has ruled out a terrorist motive. The bomb vest found on him has also been found to have been fake.
An official at Egypt’s ministry of foreign affairs told the Guardian: “He’s not a terrorist, he’s an idiot. Terrorists are crazy but they aren’t stupid. This guy is,”
Cyprus’ Prime Minister Nikos Anastasiades also said: “It’s all to do with a woman. We are doing everything to release the hostages.”