At Hoshanah Rabbah Torah study, Netanyahu calls flydubai rescue ‘chain of miracles’

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the dramatic rescue of a flydubai flight bound for Israel as a “chain of miracles” during a Hoshanah Rabbah Torah study session at the Knesset in Jerusalem on Thursday evening.

“The tradition of Jewish heroism tips the scales,” Netanyahu said. “What happened yesterday was a chain of miracles with divine assistance.”

The prime minister was referring to Wednesday’s attack aboard flydubai Flight FZ1073 from Dubai to Tel Aviv, when an Omani co-pilot stabbed Indian captain Smit Machchhar and allegedly attempted to crash the aircraft while it was flying over Saudi Arabia.

Passengers and crew members overpowered the co-pilot, while additional pilots traveling aboard the aircraft took control and landed it safely at Tabuk Airport in Saudi Arabia.

Netanyahu said that without the actions of those aboard the aircraft, Israel could have been facing a national tragedy.

“We could have been sitting here today in national mourning, facing a devastating blow to Israel, but instead, there was a great deliverance,” he said.

Earlier Thursday, Netanyahu said the Omani co-pilot had undergone “Islamist radical indoctrination” and appeared to have intended to bring down the aircraft.

“We know that he underwent Islamist radical indoctrination. That appears to be something we are gathering from his personal information,” Netanyahu told Fox News.

“It looks very likely that he was going to down the plane,” he said, stressing that the investigation was continuing and that it was too early to determine whether Iran was involved.

The Torah study session, held in the Knesset sukkah, focused on the theme of “heroism” and connected examples of courage from Jewish history with those displayed during the current war and aboard the flydubai aircraft.

Netanyahu cited the biblical account of Jonathan, son of King Saul, whose initiative and courage against the Philistines helped turn the course of battle.

“One man, acting on his own initiative, with endless resourcefulness and unimaginable courage, goes out against the Philistines, strikes them, changes the course of the entire battle and saves Israel,” Netanyahu said. “The heroism of one man.”

He also cited the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, the Sobibor uprising, Israel’s War of Independence and the 1976 Entebbe rescue operation as examples of Jewish heroism, connecting them with Israeli soldiers fighting today.

“We have great stories of heroism from our ancestors, but we also have stories of heroism from modern times,” Netanyahu said.

The event was attended by Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana, senior defense establishment officials, wounded IDF soldiers, wives of reservists and cadets from the Tavor Pre-Military Academy.

The Torah study was dedicated to the memory of fallen Israeli soldiers and victims of terrorism, the recovery of the wounded and unity among the people of Israel.

Hoshanah Rabbah, observed on the seventh day of Sukkot, traditionally includes extended prayer and Torah study and marks the conclusion of the festival’s intermediate days.