Hijack drama over the Mediterranean

Press, 6 September 1976, Page 1

Hijack drama over the Mediterranean

NZPA Larnaca (Cyprus) Three Arab hijackers are threatening to blow up a hijacked KLM Royal Dutch airliner with 78 passengers and five crew members aboard unless Israel releases eight prisoners.

The plane was being refuelled at Larnaca Airport late this morning, after an expired ultimatum and a 10hour drama covering most of the Mediterranean. The DC9 landed at Larnaca—for a second time—with only a few minutes of fuel left, after being refused permission to land at Tel Aviv. The airliner was met by Israeli jet fighters and turned back as it approached Tel Aviv Airport. At that stage the hijackers’ ultimatum had expired and the plane had less than an hour’s fuel. The pilot'said that the hijackers seemed determined to blow up the airliner and were placing highexplosives in the passenger cabin. Israeli authorities were refusing categorically to have any contact with the hijackers. At Tel Aviv all runways were blocked by large trucks and other obstacles to prevent the aircraft landing. The hijackers said they would land the plane and release the passengers if a prearranged code word were transmitted to representatives of the Popular

Front for the Liberation of Palestine, either in Iraq or in Libya. “If this does not happen we shall blow up the plane in the air when the deadline expires,” one of the hijackers told the control tower in Arabic. Heading the list of the eight prisoners is Bishop Hilareon Capucci and a Japanese Red Army terrorist, Kozo Okomoto. The other six all have Arab names. The list of prisoners and the ultimatum were related to the Dutch Ambassador to Cyprus, Mr Herman Jerissen, who sat in the control tower at Larnaca with Cyprus Government officials. Mr Jerissen said he was in contact with his Government, which is also in touch with Israeli authorities. He said the hijackers had told him they would land the plane in an Arab country and release the hostages only after they got confirmation the eight prisoners had been released and had actually taken off in an aircraft from Tel Aviv. The K.L.M. DC9 was hijacked 20 minutes after landing at Nice on a flight

from Spain to the Netherlands and forced to fly to Tunis, in Morocco, and then on to Larnaca. It was then reported to be heading for Tel Aviv. Within an hour of landing at Larnaca the hijacked DC9 had been refuelled and food and drink put on board. The stop there was made because the twoengine jet was running low on fuel. The Dutch Ambassador to Israel (Mr Christian Arriens), on behalf of the Dutch Government, has asked the Israelis not to shoot down the airliner if it enters Israeli air snare The Dutch Governmc. ” set up a crisis centre in The Hague soon after news of the hijacking was received. During the stop in Nice about 49 passengers, most of them Dutch tourists returning home after holidays on the French Riviera, boarded the jet, to join the other passengers, also mostly Dutch, with a few Spanish and Moroccans. The aircraft’s undercarriage was damaged by obstructions placed on the runway at Tunis Airport, where it landed in spite of being refused permission. However, it was repaired by ground staff.