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- Passengers on a flight from Israel to Turkey received graphic photos of plane crashes on their phones.
- 9 suspects were arrested for AirDropping the photos and causing a panic, The Guardian reported.
- The taxiing flight returned to the gate before takeoff and was delayed for several hours.
Nine Israeli citizens were arrested Tuesday at Tel Aviv’s Ben Guiron airport on suspicion of making a terrorist threat after passengers aboard a flight to Turkey received graphic photos of plane crashes on their phones shortly before takeoff.
“The nine … are suspected of broadcasting images of an air disaster on the plane, causing panic and delaying the plane’s departure by several hours,” the Israel Airports Authority said in a statement, adding that sending the photos could be seen as a “terrorist threat,” The Guardian reported.
Though no one was injured and the flight resumed after a security search, “One woman fainted, another had a panic attack,” a passenger identified only as Diana told Israel’s Channel 12, the Jersalem Post reported.
Among the photos, The Times of Israel reported, were scenes from the crash of Asiana Airlines flight 214. The passenger flight crashed during on final approach near Seoul, South Korea, in 2013, killing three people.
The suspects may be prosecuted for disseminating false information, according to the Jersalem Post. The offense carries a maximum sentence of three years in prison.
The Ben Gurion International Airport did not immediately return Insider’s request for comment.
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