Israel believes an incident aboard a flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv may have been an attempted “terror attack” by one of the pilots, after the plane rapidly descended and was diverted to Saudi Arabia.
Two Israeli officials said the co-pilot was believed to have stabbed the captain before cabin crew entered the cockpit and took control of the aircraft.
The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Reuters that Israel’s current assessment was that the incident was an attempted “terror attack” and was not related to a mental health issue involving either pilot.
An Israeli official had earlier said emergency signals were transmitted after the pilots became involved in a physical altercation.
Doron Spielman, a spokesperson for the Israeli prime minister’s office, initially said the incident was not believed to have been a hijacking, describing it as a “different incident”.
Flight FZ1073 was travelling from Dubai to Tel Aviv when it diverted to Saudi Arabia while flying over Jordanian airspace.
The Boeing 737 transmitted a general emergency signal followed by another indicating possible unlawful interference, according to flight-tracking website Flightradar24.
Data appeared to show the aircraft suddenly descending by nearly 14,000 feet in less than 30 seconds before the first emergency signal was transmitted.
It later stabilised and landed safely at Tabuk Airport in northwestern Saudi Arabia.
It remains unclear who activated the emergency signals.
Israeli media reported that around 150 Israeli passengers were on board.
Tabuk Airport said both pilots were taken to hospital after sustaining injuries.
In a video purportedly showing an Israeli passenger from the flight and widely carried by Israeli media, the passenger said one pilot had been seriously injured and the other slightly injured after one of them was stabbed.
Neither the airport nor the passenger identified the alleged attacker.
Yasmin Abukasis said her daughter Miriam, who was travelling on the flight, told her she had heard screaming and seen a man holding a knife force one of the pilots to the floor.
She also said there was blood inside the aircraft.
Israeli media published an image purportedly taken inside the plane showing a passenger with a blood-soaked shirt. Reuters said it could not immediately verify the photograph.
The incident triggered national security consultations in Israel, which does not have official diplomatic relations with Saudi Arabia.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held security consultations and cleared his schedule for the rest of the day to manage the situation, according to an Israeli official.
The Israeli prime minister’s office said the situation was “under control” and that measures were being taken to bring the Israeli passengers home.
Flydubai has so far provided few details, saying only that the flight experienced an “incident” and diverted to Tabuk, where it landed safely.
The Dubai-owned airline said all passengers were safe and accounted for.
The UAE had not commented on the incident.
The incident comes days after Netanyahu met UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan during a rare visit to the Gulf country.
Israel and the UAE have developed close security, military and economic ties since establishing diplomatic relations in 2020.
Earlier this year, Israel provided the UAE with Iron Dome air-defence systems and Israeli personnel to operate them, helping defend against Iranian attacks launched in retaliation for Israeli and U.S. strikes on Iran.
Flydubai operates daily return flights between Dubai and Tel Aviv, with the route normally passing through Saudi Arabian and Jordanian airspace.
A flydubai flight on the same route made an emergency landing in Riyadh in September 2025 because of a medical incident, according to Israeli media.
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