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 The suspect, whom Cypriot and Egyptian authorities have identified
as Seif Eldin Mustafa, 59, surrendered on Tuesday after
commandeering a domestic Alexandria-Cairo flight with 72 passengers
and crew on board.
A Larnaca court on Wednesday ordered him to be held in custody for
eight days on suspicion of hijacking, abduction, threatening
violence, terrorism-related offences and two counts related to
possession of explosives.
The latter counts were connected to his claim of being strapped with
explosives, even though the belt he wore is believed to be fake, a
police source told Reuters.
As he left the court compound in a police jeep, Mustafa stuck his
hand out of an open window flashing the 'v' sign for victory.
 Mustafa took charge of the early morning flight by flashing what
appears to be a belt stuffed with plastic wires and a remote
control, directing it to the holiday island where he asked for the
release of female prisoners in Egypt, and to come in contact with
his Cypriot ex-wife.
"When someone hasn't seen his family for 24 years and wants to see
his wife and children, and the Egyptian government doesn't allow it,
what should one do?," he told Cypriot police in a statement.
Details of his claimed predicament were not available.
All hostages were released unharmed after a six-hour standoff.
The suspect allegedly commandeered the aircraft 15 minutes after
takeoff from Alexandria. He approached a flight attendant and showed
off the belt, attached to a remote control he held in his hand,
investigating officer Andreas Lambrianou told the court.
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"The suspect asked all passengers and crew to hand in their
passports, then gave two messages to a member of the crew, asking
that the pilot be informed that he was a hijacker and wanted to land
at an airport in Turkey, Greece or Cyprus, but preferably Cyprus,"
Lambrianou said.
"In a note, he stressed that if the airplane landed on Egyptian
territory he would immediately blow the plane up."
In Cyprus, Mustafa dropped an envelope on the runway addressed to a
Cypriot woman, later ascertained to be his ex-wife. In the letter,
the suspect demanded the release of 63 female prisoners held in
Egypt.
(Writing By Michele Kambas; Editing by Angus MacSwan)
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