Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid has accused the government of playing “cheap politics” by using Israel’s security for political ends over the aircraft incident.
He made the accusation on Wednesday (September 30), Anadolu news agency reported. Lapid rejected attempts to link the aircraft incident to a security briefing he received from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday evening, saying the briefing did not touch on it at all.
“I want to make this clear. There was not the slightest hint of the aircraft incident in the prime minister’s security briefing. Nothing of the sort, or even close to it, was said there,” Lapid wrote on X. He also accused people close to the government of trying to exploit the incident politically.
“All the explanations and spin the spokespeople are now putting out only prove what was clear yesterday: they are once again trying to play cheap politics with Israel’s security,” Lapid said. “This is an irresponsible group.”
Lapid was given the security briefing on Tuesday after Netanyahu warned of a possible unspecified attack on Israel before the October 27 election. After the meeting, Lapid said there was no reason for public panic and that security threats should be handled professionally and responsibly.
On Wednesday, an emergency developed on flydubai flight FZ1073 from Dubai to Tel Aviv. After it sent emergency and unlawful interference signals, the plane was diverted to Tabuk in Saudi Arabia, where it landed safely. Israeli fighter jets were also scrambled.
Israeli authorities initially investigated the possibility of a hijacking or other security incident, but later reports pointed to a dispute in the cockpit. Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Tabuk said in a statement that both the captain and first officer were injured and were taken to hospital for treatment.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report