Benjamin Netanyahu says too early to tell who may have been behind plane incident as carrier halts all flights to Israel

The motive, background and affiliation of the Omani co-pilot who stabbed his captain in an apparent attempt to crash an Israel-bound flight from Dubai remains unknown, as international teams open investigations into the incident.

Israeli passengers intervened to stop the attack on Wednesday, restraining the co-pilot, while a reserve crew in the plane was able to stabilise the plummeting plane and ultimately land it safely in Saudi Arabia.