The Western Journal reports that a flight was grounded moments before takeoff after passengers “received images of plane crashes on their phones.”
Passengers received images of tragic Turkish Airlines’ crashes in 2009 and 2013.
The Turkish plane was preparing to take off from Ben Gurion Airport in Israel. Concerned passengers reported the photos that prompted the plane’s grounding and an investigation.
The Times of Israel reports that nine Israelis from a village in northern Israel are suspected of sending the photos, “which could be interpreted as constituting a threat to carry out an attack.”
The Hebrew Ynet news site reports the images were sent using AirDrop, an Apple application that allows users to send files to Apple devices that are in close proximity.
Police report that all detainees are approximately 18-years-old.
The incident follows a week of upheaval in the area known as the Temple Mount and in regions bordering the Golan Heights. A Palestinian stabbed three civilians to death, multiple assaults were reported and terrorists launched several rockets into Israel over the weekend.
The Daily Wire reports that since the “Guardian of the Walls” operation began in October, “approximately 4070 rockets have been fired from the Gaza Strip at Israeli territory, of which approximately 610 failed launches fell in the Gaza Strip.”
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reports, “The Iron Dome Air Defense System has an intercept rate of approximately 90%.”
Reporting on the tension in the region, the algemeiner published a story with the following headline: “Amid Terror Wave, IDF Kicks Off Large-Scale Drill to Simulate Multifront War.”
The BBC reports that the captain of the Turkish AnadoluJet plane aborted the Istanbul-bound plane’s scheduled takeoff after passengers alerted the flight crew. The disturbing news prompted the pilot to return to the gate, though the plane was ready for takeoff.
The Guardian reports that “One woman fainted, another had a panic attack.”
After the plane returned to the gate, the 160 passengers were detained while a security check was performed. Personal luggage was also inspected.
After a five-hour delay, all but nine passengers were allowed to return to the plane, which then safely flew to Istanbul.
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