Israel 'was prepared to shoot down hijacked Flydubai jet' to prevent an 'Israeli 9/11'

Israel was prepared to shoot down the flydubai plane allegedly subject to an attempted hijacking despite more than 150 of its citizens flying on board, sources have said.The flight's co-pilot allegedly attacked its captain with an emergency axe and tried to crash the plane as it approached Israel en route from Dubai to Tel Aviv last week.US and Israeli intelligence believe the co-pilot planned to crash the plane into Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion airport or a tower block in the city.Benjamin Netanyahu's government had been prepared to shoot the plane down to avoid an 'Israeli 9/11', sources told CBS News.As part of long-standing procedure for this type of threat, the Israeli Air Force tried to contact the flydubai cockpit without success before a command centre was put together and fighter jets scrambled.Authorities closed Israel's airspace as the jets flew to investigate but called them back shortly afterwards after the plane, which had been around 400 miles from the Israeli border, turned toward Saudi Arabia.Had flight 1073 continued on its path, the Israeli jets were set to fly into Jordan and come close enough to inspect the plane's cockpit and cabin.Having fed their observations back to the command centre and the Air Force, the jets would have remained in place as officials assessed the information. A flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv last week was allegedly subject to an attempted hijacking after its co-pilot attacked the captain with an emergency axe Sources said Israel was prepared to shoot the plane down to prevent a 9/11-style attack but the final decision would have been made by Benjamin Netanyahu, pictured speaking after the plane landed in Saudi ArabiaIf there had been panic on board, officials would have consulted with the defence minister and Mr Netanyahu to decide their next move.Protocol demands rogue flights approaching Israel are shot out of the sky but only the prime minister could have made such a decision.The flydubai flight would have been labelled rogue had it continued on its path, maintained radio silence and indicated no demands from its hijacker.However after plunging 14,000ft in 29 seconds, the plane's captain fought the co-pilot long enough to unlock the cockpit door, after which passengers and staff overpowered the alleged attacker, allowing them to land safely in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.The sources said shooting the jet down would be preferable to hundreds dying in a plane crash at Israel's Azrieli buildings, Ben Gurion airport or another 'high-value target'.An Omani national, the co-pilot is believed to have been a 'lone wolf' extremist and was accused of 'Islamist radical indoctrination' by Mr Netanyahu.Reports have named the co-pilot, who remained in the United Arab Emirates over the weekend for questioning, as Hamam al-Hammami.Israel has sent its own representatives to the UAE to join the investigation.On Saturday the plane's severely wounded captain Smit Machchhar told Mr Netanyahu that al-Hammami had asked him to pray midway through the flight, which was not an unusual request.'Suddenly, after four or five minutes, there was a big blow to the back of my head', he said, adding: 'My first thought was that there was catastrophic damage to the aircraft.'But after that, the blows kept coming, one after the other. That's when I realized it's not the aircraft, it's the other guy who was in the cockpit with me.'He said he was badly injured and was losing his vision as he felt the plane 'sharply going down'. The plane's captain, Smit Machchhar, pictured in hospital after the alleged hijacking The co-pilot has been named in reports as Omani national Hamam al-HammamiAs he tried to open the cockpit door, al-Hammami stopped him. He was lying on the cockpit floor as he heard screams coming from the cabin.He said he had to summon his strength to try and get to the door: 'I had one last fight left in me. If I don't do it, I'm going to die.'Lunging for the door, he managed to open it for the waiting passengers and cabin crew.'People were waiting to pounce back and take control and the rest is what you know sir,' he told the Israeli leader.It was previously revealed al-Hammami said women should be 'stomped on' during religious rants posted on his social media.While enrolled at Buckinghamshire New University (BNU) – where he studied for a three-year, distance-learning degree in aviation before graduating in 2023 – al-Hammami seemingly encouraged violence towards women in a series of posts, praising giving them a 'pre-emptive slap'.He worked for Oman Air as a trainee in 2024 but was removed from flying and moved to an administrative job because of concerns he may have been influenced by radical groups during his time in Syria, according to officials.It was not immediately clear to what extent the co-pilot was vetted when he was hired by flydubai.Al-Hammami was born in the UAE to a Syrian mother and was entitled to Omani citizenship through his father.