“If the Lord had not been on our side
when people attacked us,
they would have swallowed us alive
when their anger flared against us.”
(Psalm 124:2-3)
An Israeli miracle in the sky
We have all heard the news about the attempted hijacking of the flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv, where a plane filled with Israelis was almost downed by the co-pilot in an attempted terror attack.
The fact that we are reading stories about heroics rather than tragedy is why we believe a miracle took place in the sky.
It is a miracle that the pilot, somehow, after being stabbed multiple times, overpowered his attacker and opened the cockpit door, allowing several passengers to enter the cockpit, subdue the terrorist, and take back control of the plane.
It is a miracle that the plane did not fall apart. The plane apparently reached supersonic speeds as it was nosediving before pulling up sharply. A senior pilot and aviation expert who was interviewed on CNN recreated the flight in a simulator and was shocked, saying that if the numbers are correct, the plane should have disintegrated.
There was heavy damage to the plane in a number of areas, including a section of its tail fin falling off, and it was leaking transmission fluid. However, not only did it stay held together, but it was able to be flown to safety roughly an hour after the emergency was declared.
It is also a miracle that there were two additional flydubai pilots on board, not to mention a medic, and of course, some IDF reservists who are trained in counter terrorism. The co-pilot wanted to murder Jews, but he underestimated how well equipped they are for survival.
Beyond the natural, we believe the hand of God was upon that flight. After all, the God of Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps (Psalm 121:4).
Antisemitic lies on the ground
We know about what happened on the now infamous flydubai flight, including video footage, pictures, and witness testimonies. Despite all that, there are also a lot of lies and hatred flying around.
We also know that Satan is the ‘Father of Lies’ (John 8:44) and, as is expected with any story involving Israel or Israelis, the Enemy is in full attack.
The first piece of misinformation was how the media chose to report the incident in its initial stages, causing many people to dismiss the severity of the situation.
Headlines far and wide, from the BBC and Sky News in the UK to the New York Times in the US, all reported that the flight had made an emergency landing because the two pilots got into an altercation. Many people would have read these headlines and simply thought it was some unprofessional conduct by two pilots. In fact, we saw hundreds of comments on these news sites stating just that. People were hoodwinked by misleading headlines.
We have no doubt that if this were any other flight involving victims from any other country, the media would have played it differently. Instead, because Israelis are involved and they are the victims, much of the media did everything it could to try and sow discord in people’s minds. They really cannot hide their anti-Israel bias.
Now that the mainstream media outlets have no choice but to report the truth, it is the anti-Israel activists and antisemites who are taking the reins in spreading misinformation and wild conspiracies.
We have read numerous ‘hot takes’ that suggest the whole event was staged by Israel to take the world’s attention off Gaza. Despite what the antisemites think, Israel will not risk its own people’s lives for a moment of good publicity. It hasn’t received good publicity from this incident, and as October 7th shows, even when over 1,200 Israelis are slaughtered, the world still does not care.
It makes even less sense when you consider that this was an Omani terrorist, flying on a Dubai-based airline over Saudi Arabian and Jordanian airspace. These are not exactly countries that favour Israel. In fact, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is the only country with diplomatic relations with Israel out of those four countries, and Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has today released a video encouraging Israelis to continue visiting Dubai, explaining that one million Israelis have visited Dubai since the Abraham Accords of 2020. Israel has no intention of harming this relationship, and there is a real danger that Israelis will now feel unsafe using the airlines of Muslim states.
We have also seen people justifying the actions of the terrorists entirely. The same way in which Hamas is justified, they argue that “Israel is so evil that it makes sense for people to try and murder Israelis”. And yes, we have seen that argument being made online this week.
Israel is under attack and needs our support
Hopefully, you can see the reality of the situation. This was an attempt by a radical antisemite to hijack and crash a plane in order to murder Israelis and spread fear amongst Jews globally. This was an attack intended to cause pain to God’s people.
We are so grateful to God that this evil was thwarted. We thank God for the heroics of the pilot and the passengers, as well as the ingenuity of modern engineering and God’s hand of blessing that kept that plane in the sky and allowed it to land safely.
We believe that all these things worked together to save lives and to prevent another national catastrophe for Israel, and this miracle has happened so close to the third anniversary of October 7th.
Let’s continue to stand with Israel and the Jewish people against this evil. Let’s continue to pray for the peace of Jerusalem. And let’s continue to worship the God of Israel and praise Him for His goodness to His people. Hallelujah!
For Zion’s Sake,
The CUFI UK Team
P.S. Please consider donating to support the work of CUFI at this crucial time as we defend Israel and the Jewish people.
