MOSCOW, October 5. /TASS/. Russia strongly condemns the crime committed by the Flydubai co-pilot and hopes for an objective investigation into the incident, the Russian Foreign Ministry said.

"The Russian side strongly condemns the crime committed by the crew member and expects a thorough and impartial investigation. Moscow notes with satisfaction that, thanks to the courage of the pilot-in-command and the passengers, a tragedy was averted," it said.

According to the ministry, Moscow took notice of the statement by the UAE Prosecutor General’s office of October 3, which classified the incident as an attempted terror attack.

On September 30, a Flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv made an emergency landing at Saudi Arabia’s Tabuk Airport following a security incident. On October 1, the Saudi Ministry of the Interior confirmed that the incident was caused by the stabbing of the flight captain by his co-pilot, which left the two of them with injuries of varying severity.

Both pilots departed for Abu Dhabi with an Emirati security escort once their condition had stabilized, while the other six crew members had earlier safely returned to Dubai, the Saudi ministry specified. The UAE continues to look into the reasons and circumstances behind the incident, including operational aspects of it and safety measures.