National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir said Thursday that he will demand Israel seek the extradition of the Omani flydubai copilot accused of attempting to crash Flight FZ1073 while it was carrying more than 170 people, mostly Israelis, from Dubai to Tel Aviv.

Ben Gvir said he intends to raise the matter with Israel’s security cabinet and call on the Justice Ministry and diplomatic officials to pursue every available avenue to have the suspect brought to Israel for prosecution.

“Someone who planned to crash a plane and murder 180 Israelis should be extradited to Israel and pay the heaviest price here,” Ben Gvir said. “Anyone who tries to murder or harm Israelis will be pursued by the State of Israel and held to account anywhere in the world.”

The suspect remains in Saudi custody while authorities investigate his actions and motive. According to Israeli officials, Saudi Arabia is expected to conduct the initial investigation before transferring him to the United Arab Emirates, where authorities have opened their own probe.

The UAE investigation is examining whether the incident was connected to terrorism and whether it involved advance planning or direction from outside parties. Emirati authorities say they have jurisdiction because the flydubai aircraft is registered in the UAE.

As of Thursday morning, investigators had not established a motive or confirmed that the copilot acted on behalf of a terrorist organization. Two Israeli security officials told Reuters that the initial Israeli assessment was that he likely acted alone, though the investigation remains ongoing.

Any Israeli extradition effort could face significant diplomatic and legal hurdles. Saudi Arabia, where the suspect is currently being held, and Oman, whose citizenship he reportedly holds, do not maintain formal diplomatic relations with Israel. The UAE, however, does have diplomatic relations with Israel under the Abraham Accords.

Israeli officials have already requested access to the investigation, with regional officials saying Israeli security personnel are assisting in efforts to determine exactly what happened aboard the aircraft.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday night that the captain and passengers who stormed the cockpit had prevented what he described as a potential “9/11 disaster.”

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