Conflicting theories emerged about the hijacker's motives. In the beginning media reported the incident was related to personal matters, as he requested to speak with his ex-wife, a Cypriot national, who in fact went to the airport under strict security measures.
Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades had responded to a reporter's question about whether the hijacker was motivated by romance, by laughing and saying: “Always there is a woman involved”.
Early on, Cypriot officials excluded the possibility of a terrorist act; however, there is a chance the hijacker’s actions had political incentives. The hijacker, who was identified by Cypriot officials as Seif Eldin Mustafa, is an ex member of the Egyptian army. He also supports the opposition in Egypt. At some point, he had thrown a four-page letter, written in Arabic, on the apron in Larnaca, requesting the release of women prisoners in Egypt and to meet with an EU representative.
The Cypriot foreign ministry confirmed the end of the crisis in a tweet: “It's over. The hijacker arrested”. All eighty-one people on the plane, including 15 crew, were freed unharmed a little after 2.30pm (local time). A statement from Egypt's civil aviation ministry said 26 foreign passengers were on board, including eight Americans, four Britons, four Dutch citizens, two Belgians, two Greeks, a French national, an Italian and a Syrian.
Speaking to reporters after the incident, Egyptian Prime Minister Sherif Ismail said the man would be questioned to clarify his motives: “At some moments he asked to meet with a representative of the European Union and at other points he asked to go to another airport but there was nothing specific”. Also, during the crisis, Cypriot foreign ministry official Alexandros Zenon described the hijacker as “unstable”.
Larnaca airport, on the south coast of Cyprus, has been closed and scheduled flights diverted elsewhere. EgyptAir also delayed a New York-bound flight from Cairo, partly due to a technical issue but partly as a precaution.
While authorities suspected since the beginning the suicide belt was not genuine, the incident will blow another major strike to Egypt’s efforts to create an atmosphere of security, very much need after the crash of a Russian passenger plane in the Sinai in late October, killing all 224 people on board. President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has said the Russian plane was brought down by a terrorist attack. Islamic State has said it planted a bomb on board.