Election propaganda defeated unity: the plane that was hijacked twice

Nir Kipnis writes about the plane that was hijacked twice: first by a villain who sought to crash it, and second by a cynical politician exploiting the heroism for political gain. While the people of Israel unite around the bravery of the passengers who subdued the co-pilot, Netanyahu and his people already checked if any of the heroes is a Netanyahu supporter, and only after it turned out there was one, the news was spread that the Prime Minister is on his way to Ben Gurion Airport.

Nir Kipnis writes a scathing column about the incident where Israelis on a Flydubai flight subdued the co-pilot who stabbed the captain and tried to crash the plane. Kipnis praises the passengers' heroism, but claims the plane was hijacked twice: first by the terrorist, and second by Netanyahu and his people who tried to make political capital from the story. According to him, even before initial details emerged, the poison machine acted to condemn the opposition leader for hinting that Netanyahu is sending neighborly signals for election purposes. Only after it was checked that one of the heroes is a Netanyahu supporter, the news was spread that the Prime Minister is on his way to Ben Gurion Airport. Kipnis compares the behavior to a football fan who disappears in losses and appears after a victory. The column sharply criticizes the attempt to appropriate the rescue and harm the sense of national unity.