A hijacked plane from Libya landed on the Mediterranean island of Malta today with 118 people including seven crew members on board, Malta’s Prime Minister and government sources said.
The plane could be seen on the tarmac surrounded by military vehicles and all flights have been cancelled. Libya confirmed the plane had been diverted.
Maltese government sources told a new agency that a single hijacker was on board and had told crew that he had a grenade. The hijacker said he would release the passengers as long as his as yet unspecified demands were accepted.
The Airbus A320 had been on a domestic Libyan route. It was operated by Afriqiyah Airways from Sabha in the south to the capital Tripoli but was re-routed.