Hijackers forced an airliner to land in Malta on Friday then freed all their hostages unharmed and surrendered after declaring their loyalty to Libya's late leader Muammar Gaddafi, APA reports quoting Reuters.
Television pictures showed two men being led from the aircraft in handcuffs. The prime minister of the tiny Mediterranean island, Joseph Muscat, tweeted "hijackers surrendered, searched and taken into custody".
The Airbus A320 had been on an internal flight in Libya on Friday morning when it was diverted to Malta, 500 km (300 miles) north of the Libyan coast, after one man told crew he had a hand grenade.
Initial reports said one of the men had told crew he was "pro-Gaddafi" and that he was willing to free all passengers if his demands were met. It was unclear what the demands were.
A Libyan television channel reported it had spoken by phone with a hijacker who described himself as head of a pro-Gaddafi party. Gaddafi was killed in an uprising in 2011, and Libya has been racked by factional violence since.
Buses were driven onto the tarmac at Malta International Airport to carry away 109 passengers, as well as some of the crew. Television footage showed no signs of struggle or alarm.
After passengers had left the plane, a man briefly appeared at the top of the steps with a plain green flag resembling that of Gaddafi's now-defunct state.
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16:15
Hijackers aboard a Libyan plane that landed in Malta have agreed to give up their weapons and let the 118 passengers on board free, Malta Today reported.
Early reports suggest that the two hijackers are pro-Gaddafi supporters who have threatened to blow up the plane with a hand-grenade, and keep the passengers hostage onboard unless certain, as yet unknown, demands are met.
Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said in a tweet that there are 111 passengers on board – 82 males, 28 females and one infant.
Earlier today, Muscat said that he has been informed of a “potential hijack situation of a Libya internal flight diverted to Malta”.
“Security and emergency operations are standing by,” he said.
The plane, Afriqiyah Airbus A320, landed in Malta at around 11:32 am. It is one of three A320s that Afriqiyah, a state-owned airline based in Tripoli, owns.
The plane, flight number 8U209, left Sabha in south-west Libya for Tripoli at 10:10 am. It was scheduled to arrive in Tripoli at 11:20 am, but was instead diverted to Malta International Airport at 11:20.
The Malta International Airport said in a statement that there was an unlawful interference at the airport and that all emergency teams have been dispatched to the site.
Flights leaving the MIA have been delayed, while planes scheduled to land at the airport are being diverted to Catania.
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15:17
An airliner on an internal flight in Libya was hijacked and diverted to Malta where it landed on Friday, Reuters reported citing Maltese media.
Two hijackers had threatened to blow up the Airbus A320, which had 118 people aboard, outlets including the Times of Malta said. The aircraft had been flying from Sebha in southwest Libya to Tripoli for state-owned Afriqiyah Airways.
The tiny Mediterranean island of Malta is about 500 km (300 miles) north of the Libyan coast.
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