Jerusalem, Sep 30: Israeli security agencies were investigating an incident aboard a Flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv after the aircraft transmitted an emergency signal and descended sharply before diverting to Saudi Arabia on Wednesday.

Israel’s state-owned Kan TV news, citing an Israeli official, reported that Israeli authorities had not ruled out a possible “terrorist incident” and were examining whether one of the two pilots may have tried to crash the aircraft. It said one of the pilots was injured.

In a video circulated on social media, an Israeli passenger with blood on his face said, “We are under attack on the plane. We have overpowered the terrorists. We are about to land.”

Earlier, a spokesperson for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the incident was not believed to have been a hijacking. An Israeli official said that the emergency signals were transmitted after the pilots became involved in a physical altercation.

A flydubai spokesperson confirmed that flight FZ 1073 operating from Dubai International Airport to Ben Gurion International Airport “experienced an incident” while en route. The aircraft later landed in Tabuk Airport in Saudi Arabia and all passengers are “safe and accounted for,” according to the spokesperson, Xinhua news agency reported.

Meanwhile, a statement issued by the spokesperson of the Israel Airports Authority said that they have opened a dedicated waiting and information area for the families of passengers on the Flydubai flight, in accordance with the directive of Minister of Transport, Miri Regev.

“The area is located in Terminal 1, in the domestic arrivals hall at Ben Gurion Airport. Family members wishing to come to Ben Gurion Airport are invited to proceed to the designated area in Terminal 1, where they will be able to wait and receive information and updates as developments unfold,” read the statement.

“Israel Airports Authority representatives will be present at the site and will assist family members as needed. We ask members of the public who are not relatives of passengers on the flight to refrain from coming to the area, in order to allow for the orderly and appropriate assistance of the families,” it added.

New York, Sep 29: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar says that the US’s lack of sensitivity to India’s concerns about terrorism emanating from Pakistan is a problem for Washington-New Delhi relations.

He did name Pakistan, but made it amply clear he was referring to it by ascribing the terrorism to “a neighbour” that uses it as a policy, and it was criticism directed at President Donald Trump for developing close relations with Pakistan, ignoring its role as a purveyor of terror.

“Perhaps there are very few countries which have been subjected to the kind of terrorism that we have from a neighbour as part of a deliberate conscious policy over many, many decades”, he said on Monday.

Therefore, the terrorism issue is “particularly important” for India, he said.

“Now, if something which matters so deeply to us, there isn’t enough understanding or appreciation or empathy of that, I think that creates a problem”, He said.

If “one of my primary concerns is not fully appreciated by my partner, then clearly there is a impact on that on the relationship”, he said.

He made these comments during an event in New York when he was asked about factors hindering better U.S. relations.

He said that besides trade, this insensitivity to terrorism was a factor.

Trump has entirely walked away from the issue of terrorism when it comes to Pakistan, in a change from the policies of the previous administrations.

Previously, the US recognised Islamabad’s role in backing global terrorism, which reached its height with the 2001 attacks by al-Qaida on the World Trade Centre in New York and the Pentagon outside Washington.

Pakistan’s role as an accessory to the attacks was exposed when al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden was found to be living under Pakistan’s protection.

Kathmandu, Sep 29: At least 27 people have been killed and seven injured across Nepal in natural disasters, including floods, landslides, inundation, strong winds and lightning triggered by incessant rainfall across Nepal since September 24 till Monday evening, Nepal’s Prime Minister’s Office said.

In a statement, the Prime Minister’s Secretariat said four people were also reported missing during the period, while 1,065 families were affected by 513 monsoon-related incidents, citing the latest government figures.

The disasters completely damaged 225 houses and partially damaged 137 others. Twenty-seven cattle sheds and 114 livestock were also affected.

The government said it has intensified rescue, relief and rehabilitation efforts while mobilising its agencies to repair damaged infrastructure and restore normal life.

Floods and landslides damaged 147 locations along highways and major roads across the country. Of these, 125 locations have already been repaired and reopened, according to government statistics.

Traffic has also been disrupted along the Kaligandaki Corridor in western Nepal due to landslides, road subsidence and damage to bridge approaches in parts of Beni-Jomsom, Palpa, Baglung and Nawalparasi districts. Authorities estimate that it could take more than three days to fully restore the road.

Electricity supply has also been affected by the floods. A total of 1,013.2 megawatts of electricity supply through the national transmission system was disrupted in the Kaligandaki, Marsyangdi and Seti-Madi river corridors.

About a dozen hydropower projects along the Bhotekoshi and Trishuli river corridors were also badly damaged following the deadly flooding on August 26, which claimed more than 1,400 lives and left around 5,000 people missing, according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority.

The Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA), the state-owned power utility, said it plans to import more than 1,100 MW of electricity from India during the upcoming winter season, when domestic generation is expected to decline by around 70 percent as run-of-the-river hydropower projects generate less electricity.

Domestic electricity generation after January is expected to remain around 1,218 MW against projected demand of 2,293 MW, the NEA said.

“That’s why we have planned to import 1,155 MW of electricity from India during the upcoming dry season to manage the power supply,” Dirghayu Kumar Shrestha, managing director of the NEA, said on Monday.