Egyptian Court Sentences Plane Hijacker To Life In Prison

CAIRO (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 25th September, 2019) An Egyptian court on Tuesday gave a life sentence to a man who hijacked an airliner during a domestic flight in 2016 and forced it to fly to Cyprus, media said.

The judgement against Seif Eldin Mustafa, who was 59 at the time of the hijack, was passed by a criminal court in Alexandria, the Masrawy news website reported.

Mustafa said he hijacked the EgyptAir plane on the way from Alexandria to Cairo in protest against the Egyptian government.

The plane landed in Larnaca airport. The man, who pretended to wear an explosive belt, was detained and all passengers and the crew freed unharmed after a six-hour standoff.

Mustafa was handed over to Egypt in August 2018 after two years in Cypriot custody. He protested the extradition, saying he would be tortured and murdered. Egypt promised Cyprus a fair trial.