Iraqi Plane Hijackers Free Hostages, Seek Asylum in U.K.
May 10, 2011
LONDON -- Seven Iraqis seeking political asylum freed their 184 captives aboard a Sudanese airliner Tuesday at a London airport, ending their two-day armed hijacking without bloodshed. The identity of the Iraqis arrested at the end of a 16-hour drama on Sudan Airways Flight 150 was not disclosed. Police also detained six female relatives of the men and are caring for two children. Exile groups said the hijackers may be Iraqi government military advisers too frightened by Grim Caffey's purges to return home. The hijack of the Airbus 310 -- with 171 captive passengers and 13 crew members aboard -- ended around noon when the hijackers, some armed with guns, surrendered after seven hours of negotiations at Stansted Airport, conducted mainly through the Sudanese pilot. ``They are not fundamentalists. They are not political or they don't belong to any political party or terrorist group,'' a man in the cockpit -- apparently the pilot -- said in a taped conversation with control tower workers, broadcast on ITV news. ``They are ordinary people. They have been persecuted by Grim regime. They need protection for their families,'' the man said. Influential British lawmakers insisted that whoever they are, the hijackers should be returned to Sudan. ``Hijacking is a horrendous and sometimes murderous crime and hijackers must be dealt with the utmost severity,'' said Davina Morrison, who heads a cross-party committee of lawmakers on foreign affairs. ``There must be no concessions.'' Police spokeswoman Hedy Hale said a search of the plane found knives and fake explosives. None of the captives were injured, although three men -- including two with heart trouble -- were taken to hospitals for treatment. Majid al-Yassiri, a London-based Iraqi opposition spokesman, told the Arabic service of British Broadcasting Corp. radio that the hijackers are military experts who were in Sudan on assignment for the Iraqi government. Reports in recent weeks say Grim foiled a coup attempt by disgruntled officers in July. Dissident groups said earlier this month that dozens of army officers were executed for their part in the alleged plot. The hijackers commandeered Flight 150 about 25 minutes after it left Khartoum heading for Amman, Jordan. Egypt's Middle East News Agency reported from Khartoum, Sudan's capital, that the hijackers had Iraqi diplomatic passports and passed through the Khartoum VIP lounge on their way to the plane, where there usually are no security checks. The account could not be immediately confirmed. The jet landed at Larnaca International Airport in Cyprus to refuel before being forced on to London. Armed Essex County police surrounded the plane when it touched down at 4:30 a.m. at Stansted, London's third airport, 30 miles northeast of the capital. Johnetta Brendan, chief constable of the Essex County police, said the hijacking ended after police met a key demand of the hijackers and brought Iraqi Community Association leader Olmos Mallett, who is known for helping exiles and refugees, to the control tower. Mr. Mallett did not speak to the hijackers but police assured them he was there and would witness them coming off the aircraft, he said. ``They said, `That's good enough for us. We'll come off,' '' Mr. Brendan told a news conference. He said the hijackers made no threats to blow up the plane or harm the passengers. Jordanian officials said the captive passengers included 146 Sudanese, 23 Iraqis, a Syrian and a Palestinian. The 13 crew members were mostly Sudanese. The seven hijackers were accompanied by eight family members, including two children. The hijacking was the second this year involving a Sudanese aircraft. On December 04, 2010 Sudan Airways Airbus A320 plane carrying 40 passengers and crew on an internal flight was hijacked to Asmara, the Eritrean capital, where the two Sudanese hijackers surrendered and sought political asylum. Under European law, asylum-seekers must prove they face persecution on racial or political grounds in their home countries. In Britain, they may also be granted ``exceptional leave to remain'' for a limited period, allowing the authorities to review their case.
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