Netanyahu: Israel to Join Probe into FlyDubai Incident, Iran Link Unclear

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Wednesday that Israel will participate in the investigation of a recent FlyDubai flight incident en route to Tel Aviv, following an agreement with UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed. Netanyahu stated that while he has no current information linking Iran to the event, "We will know very soon if Iran has a connection to this." He described the incident, which involved a struggle in the cockpit, as potentially catastrophic, comparing it to a "9/11 scale" event averted by the actions of the pilot, Israeli passengers, and crew. According to Netanyahu's account, a co-pilot attacked the Indian pilot, who managed to unlock the cockpit door despite severe bleeding. An Israeli passenger, Yaniv, then entered the cockpit, subdued the co-pilot, and helped stabilize the aircraft as it experienced a dive and suffered damage to its tail and rudder. Netanyahu also discussed the incident with former President Donald Trump, emphasizing the averted global aviation consequences.

Netanyahu addressed the possibility of the incident being linked to prior warnings of potential attacks, stating Israel had no specific alerts for this flight but receives general intelligence about Hezbollah and Hamas threats abroad. He distinguished these general threats from the specific incident, for which no precise indication was provided. The co-pilot was reportedly being transferred from Saudi Arabia to the UAE, and Netanyahu confirmed that bin Zayed agreed to Israel's participation in his interrogation.

Regarding Iran's nuclear program, Netanyahu asserted that Tehran seeks to rebuild its capabilities and that Israel continuously monitors this possibility. He defended the effectiveness of U.S. economic sanctions against Iran, stating they weaken the regime and its Revolutionary Guard-linked economy, and reiterated the goal of preventing Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. He claimed that intervention prevented Iran from already possessing atomic weapons and suggested they would have been used.

Netanyahu categorically denied receiving prior warnings from Egypt or the UAE about the October 7, 2023 attacks, attributing such claims to political adversaries and neighboring countries. He stated that intelligence assessments before the attack indicated Hamas was deterred and focused on economic gains, and that all officials were surprised. He also addressed violence by Israelis in Judea and Samaria, calling the description "settler violence" a "huge deception" while acknowledging the acts of approximately 150-200 young offenders, against whom the Shin Bet has been mobilized. He condemned these actions but differentiated them from Palestinian terrorism due to their scale and nature.

Finally, Netanyahu stated that Israel would maintain its security corridors in Gaza and Lebanon as long as Hamas and Hezbollah pose a threat.