30 March 2016,00:04GMT
The hijacking of Egypt Air flight MS181 is over after the alleged hijacker Eldin Mustafa gave himself up and was arrested by authorities at Larnaca airport in Cyprus.
All passengers and crew who were aboard the plane are confirmed as being safe. It has also been confirmed that the ‘suicide bomb belt’ being worn by the hijacker was a fake.
Officials stated earlier that the hijacking was not an act of terrorism, but rather that Eldin Mustafa appeared to be psychologically unstable and was seeking to speak to his Cypriot ex-wife.
“He started asking for European Union representatives to assure him about matters that had no logical basis,” Cyprus’s Foreign Minister Ioannis Kasoulides told reporters.
29 March 2016, 09:05GMT
Passengers on the hijacked Egypt Air flight MS181 aircraft have been released, according to the airline. The passengers disembarked from the plane on the tarmac at Larnaca airport in Cyprus.
The Egypt Air plane permitted to land in Larnaca airport on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus after being hijacked on its way to Cairo from Alexandria on Tuesday.
The airline reports all 81 passengers were released. However, the crew and five foreign nationals are understood to still be hostage on the aircraft.
The situation is ongoing at the time of writing.
IMAGE: Egypt Air (stock image)