EgyptAir hijacking suspect reportedly asked for meeting with ex-wife

The hijacking of an EgyptAir plane by a man claiming to be wearing a suicide vest stoked fears of terrorism on Tuesday, coming one week after the deadly attacks in Brussels. But according to initial reports, the hijacker apparently told hostage negotiators he was trying to get in touch with his ex-wife.

The alleged hijacker, identified as 59-year-old Seif Eldin Mustafa, told the crew of the Cairo-bound plane he was wearing a suicide belt shortly after takeoff in Alexandria, forcing it to land in Larnaca, Cyprus. According to the state broadcaster in Cyprus, Mustafa, an Egyptian national and former army officer, had a four-page letter in which he demanded the release of female prisoners in Egypt and asked for a meeting with his ex-wife.

According to the New York Times, the woman, who lives in Cyprus, “visited the airport and helped persuade him to surrender.”

Before he did, Mustafa released most of the 55 passengers and seven crew members from the plane as it sat on the tarmac. At one point, he appeared to hand the letter to a female airport official who had come to meet the plane as she held her head in her hands.

The alleged explosives on Mustafa’s belt were fake, Cyprus’ minister of foreign affairs said. No one was reported injured.

But in a bizarre press conference held during the five-hour standoff, Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades laughed as he told reporters Mustafa’s motivation was not terror — but love.

“We are doing our utmost for everyone to be released [safely] and to give an end to this unprecedented… In any case, it’s not something that has to do with terrorism, if you know what I mean,” Anastasiades said.

When asked if the hijacking involved a woman, Anastasiades quipped, “Always, there is a woman.”

For Egyptian air travelers, though, the threat of terrorism is no laughing matter. Tuesday’s hijacking comes less than six months after a Russian airplane that took off from Egypt’s Sharm el-Sheikh airport crashed in the Sinai, killing all 224 people onboard. ISIS claimed responsibility, saying it used a bomb to down the plane.