The Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, has extended an invitation to the Indian pilot Smit Machchhar, commander of the Flydubai plane that suffered an attack last Wednesday during a flight to Tel Aviv. Netanyahu has also invited the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, for both to participate in lighting a candle in Israel during the events of Independence Day, scheduled for May 11 and 12.
"You are a hero for Israel, India, and the whole world. I invite Prime Minister Narendra Modi and you to light a flame during Israel's Independence Day," Netanyahu stated during a conversation with Machchhar recorded in a note from Netanyahu's press office.
The statement describes an "emotional conversation" in which the Israeli leader asked the pilot to recount how the events unfolded, and Machchhar provided new details about the "terrifying moments" experienced in the cockpit.
Thus, Netanyahu explained that the Omani co-pilot, Hamam al Hamami, prayed before attacking him, according to Machchhar's account. "Suddenly, after four or five minutes, I felt a strong blow to the back of my head. The first thing I thought was that the plane had suffered catastrophic damage," he recounted.
"But instead, there were more blows, one after another. Then I realized it wasn't the plane, but the other guy who was with me in the cockpit," he pointed out from the Emirati hospital where he is recovering.
The captain then tried to immobilize the attacker, although the impacts prevented him from seeing clearly. "I saw everything blurry," he explained. "The next thing I felt was how the plane was diving" and that Al Hamami prevented him from opening the access door to the cockpit. He then remembers lying on the floor and hearing screams.
"Then against all odds, I got up and went to the door and opened it, and there were the people who were waiting outside to come in and take control, and the rest is what you already know, sir," he recounted.
The aircraft, with 174 passengers and a crew of eight on board, managed to land "without incidents" in Saudi Arabia at 9:45 a.m. (local time). All occupants received the "necessary attention" and resumed the journey to Tel Aviv at 5:40 p.m. (local time), except for the captain and the co-pilot, who remained in the area.
Saudi Arabia lacks diplomatic relations with Israel, just like Oman, the country of origin of the suspect. For its part, the United Arab Emirates, which did normalize its ties with Israel in 2020 after the Abraham Accords, does not have a bilateral extradition treaty with the Israeli state.