A would-be plane hijacker in Bangladesh was taken down by the country’s military over the weekend.
The terrorist took the crew of a Dubai-bound Boeing 737 hostage before getting surrounded and killed after the plane made an emergency landing on Sunday night.
Terror in the air
A rescue operation lasting eight minutes put an end to a failed terror plot that unfolded on a 142-passenger flight from Dhaka to Dubai via Chittagong. The 20-something Bangladeshi male suspect wrested control of a Biman Bangladesh Airlines Flight BG 147 for about 25 minutes using a toy gun.
The hijacker attempted to force his way into the cockpit, but was blocked by a crew member. He brandished the fake gun, threatened to blow up the plane, and took a crew member hostage.
Crew members reported the situation to air traffic controllers who gave directions for an emergency landing. The hijacking came to an end when the pilots made an emergency stop at Shah Amanat International Airport in the city of Chittagong, said Rezaul Karim of the Bangladeshi military’s inter-service public affairs office.
The plane’s passengers and crew were safely evacuated before military commandoes stormed the plane and gunned the hijacker down in an exchange of fire after he refused to surrender. He died from his injuries before reaching the hospital.
“We tried to arrest him or get him to surrender but he refused and then we shot him,” said Major General S.M. Motiur Rahman.
Hijack plot foiled
Military authorities said that the suspect was “mentally imbalanced,” and was having issues in his marriage. He had demanded to speak with his wife and Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina while the hostage situation unfolded.
“The suspect appeared to be ‘mentally imbalanced’,” said Air Vice Marshal M. Naim Hassan, chairman of the Civil Aviation Authority. “I am saying this because of his behavior. He wanted to talk to the prime minister.”
Still, Air Vice Marshal Mofidur Rahman of Bangladesh’s air force described him as a “terrorist.”
Police are investigating the incident. Bangladesh authorities said Monday that the suspect did not have explosives and confirmed that the gun was fake.
“The pistol with the suspect was a toy pistol and he had no bomb attached to his body,” said Kusum Dewan, additional commissioner of Chittagong police. “He appeared to be mentally imbalanced. We heard he had a personal issue with his wife and demanded to speak to the prime minister. But we are still investigating. We don’t want to come to any conclusions right now.”
Authorities said they are trying to find out how the suspect boarded the plane with a fake pistol.
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