Egyptair hijacking crisis stalled with reliable information lacking

The hijacker is now named as Seif Eldin Mustaf (not Ibrahim Samaha) and is said to be negotiating for the release of prisoners in Egypt in return for setting free the captain, crew and three foreign hostages held aboard Egyptair 181 after the rest of the passengers were freed. Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades stated earlier that the hijacking of the Alexandria-to-Cairo domestic flight Tuesday morning was not terrorism-related. Reuters has since reported that a flight to New York was delayed in Cairo over “security fears” and three passengers taken off the plane. No authoritative information is yet forthcoming about the hijacker’s motives or whether indeed he brought a bomb aboard the plane. The flight has remained stationary on the tarmac of Larnaca airport in Cyprus since its emergency landing there almost six hours ago.