Hijack scare in Calcutta, detained Israelis set free

Hijack scare in Calcutta, detained Israelis set free
PRESS TRUST OF INDIA

CALCUTTA, JAN 12: Eleven Israelis detained at the Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport here yesterday before boarding a flight to Dhaka were released on Wednesday night after being questioned for nearly 24 hours amidst a hijack scare.

Official sources at the airport said the 11, detained at the airport last night due to "some errors" in their travel documents and visas, were released for their onward journey to Bangladesh.

The sources said the passports and intensive interrogation of the detained persons for last 24 hours revealed they were Israelis and not Afghans as reported earlier. "Such confirmation was made by the Israeli embassy in Delhi," they said.

The sources said all the 11 people, found to be on a "religious mission" to Bangladesh, were released to board the Calcutta-Dhaka flight of the Biman Bangladesh Airlines late tonight.

Earlier, there were reports that the 11 people were travelling on forged passports.

An AFP report from Dhaka quoting local newspapers said India's intelligence service had detained 11 Iranian passport holders suspected of plotting to hijack the flight.

Reports in Dhaka newspapers said they were suspected of plotting to hijack a Bangladesh Biman Airlines flight on which they were booked.

The immigration officials, who earlier contacted the Israeli embassy in Delhi for confirmation of identity of the detained persons, said they were mostly Hebrew-speaking people and for this the process of interrogation suffered delay.

The sources said an anonymous call at Calcutta airport on Tuesday night about the possibility of hijack of a Bangladesh Biman flight further strengthened suspicion about these persons who were detained as they were about to board a Dhaka-bound Bangladesh Biman plane last night.

AFP adds from Dhaka: The Daily Star and other newspapers quoting the BBC said the 11 were prevented from boarding the flight from Calcutta to Dhaka because the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) claimed to have "specific reports" of a hijacking plot.