EgyptAir plane hijack passenger wrongly accused of holding people hostage on board flight in Cyprus <br />News <br />Politics <br />Football <br />Sport <br />Celebs <br />TV & Film <br />Weird News <br />TRENDINGEGYPT AIR HIJACKSTORM KATIEBRUSSELS TERROR ATTACKPAIGE DOHERTYEASTERWEATHER Technology Money Travel Fashion Mums <br />Home <br />News World news Egypt Air hijack <br />EgyptAir plane hijack passenger wrongly accused of holding people hostage on board flight in Cyprus <br />11:13, 29 MAR 2016 UPDATED 11:28, 29 MAR 2016 <br />BY GEMMA MULLIN <br />Ibrahim Samaha revealed that crew members initially told passengers there was a problem with the plane before they realised it had been hijacked <br /> <br />The Live Event you are trying to watch is either unavailable or has not started <br />A man who was among terrified passengers on the hijacked EgyptAir plane says he was wrongly accused as the perpetrator. <br /> <br />Ibrahim Samaha was earlier named by Egyptian authorities as the hijacker but after his release from the aircraft, told international media he was not involved. <br /> <br />The veterinarian also revealed that crew members initially told passengers there was a problem with the plane before they realised something was wrong, according to reports. <br /> <br />He told the BBC 's Victoria Derbyshire programme: "I was not the hijacker, I was simply a passenger on that plane and I was released alongside other passengers and had absolutely nothing to do with hijacking the plane. <br /> <br />"We did not know what was going on. We got on board the plane and we were surprised that the crew took all our passports, which is unusual for a domestic flight. <br />"After a while we realised the altitude was getting higher, then we knew we were heading to Cyprus. <br /> <br />"At first the crew told us there was a problem with the plane and only later did we know it was hijacked." <br /> <br />Seven people - four crew and three passengers - remain on the EgyptAir plane with the hijacker, according to Egypt's civil aviation minister. <br /> <br />The man's motivation is unclear, but Cypriot president Nicos Anastasiades said the hijacking was nothing to do with terrorism, while a Cyprus government official said the man "seems (to be) in love". <br /> <br />A civil aviation official said the man gave negotiators at Larnaca airport the name of a woman who lives in Cyprus and asked to give her an envelope. It is unclear what relationship she and the man have. <br /> <br />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 <br />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. <br /> <br />Egyptian government spokesman Hossam al-Queish identified the man who hijacked the plane as Ibrahim Samah. <br /> <br />Mr Al-Queish told the CBC TV network that authorities could not confirm that the man had explosives on him. <br /> <br />An earlier statement from the Egyptian Aviation Ministry statement said the man claimed he was wearing an explosive belt. <br /> <br />The plane landed at the airport in the southern Cypriot city of Larnaca, also on the Mediterranean. <br />News <br />Politics <br />Football <br />Sport <br />Celebs <br />TV & Film <br />Weird News <br />TRENDINGEGYPT AIR HIJACKSTORM KATIEBRUSSELS TERROR ATTACKPAIGE DOHERTYEASTERWEATHER Technology Money Travel Fashion Mums <br />Home <br />News World news Egypt Air hijack <br /> <br />The Live Event you are trying to watch is either unavailable or has not started <br />A man who was among terrified passengers on the hijacked EgyptAir plane says he was wrongly accused as the perpetrator. <br /> <br />Ibrahim Samaha was earlier named by Egyptian authorities as the hijacker but after his release from the aircraft, told international media he was not involved.
