Saudi Arabia asks Iraq to hand two plane highjackers

The Saudi minister of the Interior prince Nayef Bin Abdul Aziz on Monday announced that Saudi Arabia asks the Iraqi authorities to hand over the two Saudi citizens who highjacked the Saudi Boeing 777 planes to Baghdad on Saturday.

Prince Nayef who was talking in a press conference in al-Riyadh said " we call for handing over the highjackers of the plane who are now at the hands of the Iraqi authorities."

He added that Saudi Arabia will not bargain the question of handing over the highjackers, stressing that al-Riyadh will take all customary measures in this regard.

On the other hand, Prince Nayef added that the two highjackers of the Saudi plane are two Saudi security officers.

In a press conference, he added that the two officers could carry a pistol to the passengers plane and it was higjacked by this pistol. He explained that the two officers are Faisal Naji al-Balwi ( 26 years old) from the security intelligence of King Abdul Aziz airport in Jeddah from where the plane took off and Ayesh Ali al-Fareedi of the birders guards forces in Najran district to the south of Saudi Arabia.

The minister added that the weapon entered the plane because of the first officer al-Balwi due to his position as airport security officer.

The minister continued that the two highjackers were friends who used to travel together to spend their voyages in Britain, France, Egypt and Morocco.

He ruled out that the kidnappers have any political motives or any contacts with political or foreign sides.