An EgyptAir passenger plane en route from Alexandria to Cairo was hijacked on Tuesday and has landed in Cyprus, sources in the civil aviation ministry and police have said.
An unidentified armed hijacker, believed to be wearing an explosive vest, has reportedly allowed women, children and all Egyptian passengers to leave the plane after it landed in Larnaca airport in Cyprus. Egyptian media reported that10 US citizens and eight Brits were on board the hijacked plane.
The plane was carrying 55 passengers and seven crew, according to an Egyptian airport official. The hijacker threatened to detonate an explosive vest which he said he had on board, the Egyptian civil aviation ministry said.
"The Airbus A-320 carrying 81 passengers and flying between Alexandria and Cairo was hijacked. The pilot said that a passenger told him he had an explosives vest and forced the plane to land in Larnaca," a ministry statement said.
An Al Arabiya News Channel correspondent said the EgyptAir pilot had contacted the Cairo airport control tower to report the hijacking. The plane had been due to land in Cairo at 7.15am
Al arabiya.
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