‘Idiot’ Egyptian plane hijacker seemed ‘to be in love’

Conflicting theories have emerged about the Egyptian hijacker’s motives following a bizarre standoff during which he donned a fake suicide belt, took selfies with a passenger, demanded he speak to his ex-wife and called for the release of women prisoners in Egypt.

It even prompted Egypt’s foreign ministry to declare, before the man’s capture, that the hijacker is “not a terrorist, he’s an idiot”. A senior Cypriot official said he was psychologically unstable and the incident did not appear related to terrorism.

President Nicos Anastasiades of Cyprus said the hijacking was “not something that has to do with terrorism” and a Cyprus government official said the man, who was arrested hours later after giving himself up, “seems [to be] in love”.