Passengers Land In Tripoli After Plane Hijacking
Agency report
The passengers of the recently hijacked Libyan plane that was forced to land in Malta have arrived in Tripoli, Libya.
The country’s news agency reports that the passengers looked healthy as they disembarked an Afriqiyah Airways airliner that had transported them from Malta.
It was reported that several government officials welcomed them on their arrival at Mitiga airport in eastern Tripoli. But the number of the officials was not specified.
An Afriqiyah Airways jet with 111 passengers and a six-member crew was hijacked on Friday when it was on a domestic flight from Sebha in southern Libya to Tripoli.
The two Libyan hijackers forced the Airbus A320 to divert to Malta.
After four hours on the Mediterranean Island, the hijackers surrendered and all the passengers and crew left the aircraft unharmed.
The Maltese government later revealed that the hijackers had used fake weapons.
Maltese Prime Minister Joseph Muscat rejected media reports that the hijackers had asked for asylum in his country.
Libya has descended into chaos since the 2011 overthrow of former President Muammar Gaddafi in an armed revolt.
The oil-rich country is divided between two rival administrations; one backed by the United Nations in Tripoli and the other in the eastern city of Tobruk.
