Police: Hijacker Was "Mentally Ill"

The Sudanese man armed with a knife who hijacked Sudan Airways flight 111 Friday was arrested by special forces after the pilot convinced him  to allow the plane to land in Khartoum, the plane's original destination, reported Reuters.

The hijacker asked that the plane, with 210 passengers aboard, be flown to South Africa. The Airbus had embarked from Tripoli, Libya, and landed safety in the Sudanese capital, according to a civil aviation authority official.

Sudanese civil aviation authority official Abdel Hafiz Abdel-Rahim said crew members followed all the air navigation security guidelines, which helped them to safely land in Khartoum.

"The hijacker burst into the pilot's cabin about one and a half hours from landing and told the captain he wanted to meet with the British ambassador, then he asked to meet the American ambassador and the media," Abdel Hafiz Abdel-Rahim said.

"Snipers dressed as journalists then took him into custody," he added.

Abdel-Rahim said the hijacker identified himself as Haloub Saeed but authorities were trying to confirm this.
Police released a statement later saying the hijacker was "mentally ill."

In January, a 24-year old man demanded an end to the conflict in Darfur and hijacked a Sudanese plane, trying to force it to fly to Europe. As ANN reported, the plane diverted to Chad where he was arrested and the passengers released unharmed. 

FMI: www.caaofsudan.org/ENGLISH/tender_r.htm