Netanyahu says Saudi Arabia arrested pilot after attack on flight carrying Israelis

The flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv made an emergency landing in Tabuk after an apparent struggle between two pilots

Saudi Arabia has arrested a pilot accused of stabbing another pilot and apparently trying to crash a flydubai aircraft carrying dozens of Israelis, according to Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Passengers and crew subdued the attacker and the plane eventually made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia.

Mr Netanyahu said the pilot had been arrested by Saudi authorities following the incident on the flight from the United Arab Emirates to Israel.

“I salute these heroes who showed exceptional resourcefulness and courage. They saved many lives and prevented a major disaster,” Mr Netanyahu said in a statement on Wednesday.

Israel believes there may have been an attempt to attack Israelis, and an investigation is ongoing, an Israeli official said earlier.

The flight landed safely in Saudi Arabia after the incident.

A person speaks onboard a Fly Dubai aircraft, that was bound for Israel from the United Arab Emirates diverted to Saudi Arabia after transmitting emergency signals, in this screen grab obtained from a social media video dated September 30, 2026. Picture: Social Media/via REUTERS

Flight makes emergency landing 

Around two-and-a-half hours after leaving Dubai, the plane sent an emergency alert, according to publicly available flight-tracking information.

The flight abruptly descended from 33,000 feet to 17,000 feet within about a minute, before making an erratic circle close to the Jordanian border and eventually landing in Tabuk about an hour later, according to Flightradar24.

Video footage circulating on social media and reviewed by The Associated Press shows two men on the floor of the plane, with bloody wounds.

Two people appear to be providing emergency medical treatment, while two others guard the cockpit.

“We are guarding the pilot,” one person says in Hebrew.

In another video, passengers weep and cry out in distress as the aircraft shakes.

The aircraft’s captain and first officer were injured and taken to hospital, according to a statement from Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Tabuk, carried by Saudi state-run Al Ekhbariya television.

Passengers were receiving medical attention from local authorities, according to a regional official.