HIJACKED EGYPTAIR FLIGHT FORCED TO LAND IN CYPRUS Love not terrorism suggested

Posted on 03/29/2016 | About Cyprus

An Egyptian man has hijacked an EgyptAir plane Tuesday and forced it to land in Cyprus, where most passengers were eventually allowed to get off. Egypt's civil aviation minister says seven people remain with the hijacker on the EgyptAir plane - four crew and three passengers. The man's motivation was unclear, but President Nicos Anastasiades said the hijacking was “not something that has to do with terrorism.”

A Cyprus government official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing investigation, said the man “seems (to be) in love.”A civil aviation official, also speaking on condition of anonymity because he wasn't allowed to disclose details of ongoing negotiations, said the man gave negotiators the name of a woman who lives in Cyprus and asked to give her an envelope. It's unclear what relationship she and the man have, though the hijacker has been identified as university professor Ibrahim Samaha, 27, and it is claimed he has asked negotiators at Larnaca airport for political asylum - and demanded to see his Cypriot ex-wife.One news outlet reported that the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said in a statement, “He's not a terrorist, he's an idiot. Terrorists are crazy but they aren't stupid. This guy is.”Flight MS181 took off from the Mediterranean coastal city of Alexandria en route to Cairo with at least 55 passengers, including 26 foreigners, and a seven-member crew.An official with flight-tracking website FlightRadar24 said the plane showed no immediate signs of distress. The flight between Alexandria and Cairo normally takes about 30 minutes.Egyptian government spokesman Hossam al-Queish who identified the hijacker as Ibrahim Samaha, told the private CBC TV network that authorities could not confirm that Samaha had explosives on him. An earlier statement from the Egyptian Aviation Ministry statement said the man claimed he had a belt with explosives.Officials at the Egyptian airport of Bourg el-Arab airport just outside Alexandria said Samaha, a veterinarian, is a dual Egyptian-American citizen.