Hijacking in the Mediterranean : 1970-2000

Abstract

A.ir travel affects people's life almost everywhere. Hundreds of thousands of aeroplanes are used throughout the world for different purposes. In this thesis, I am going to analyse hijacking in the Mediterranean in the late twentieth century by starting with a short overview of the evolution of the hijacking phenomenon and how it changed in character. Given its geographical location, it is not surprising that Malta had its share of the Mediterranean hijackings. These cases are a microcosm of the Mediterranean hijacking phenomenon. Of the five particular case studies, four were non-Maltese airline companies while one involved the Maltese National Airline. A lot was written about these hijacks, especially the 1985 one. During my research, I found out that most of what was written was always incomplete or sometimes false. Therefore, the first aim of this thesis is to reveal the truth. The second aim is to find out why certain areas in the Mediterranean are more prone to hijacking than others. The third aim is to prove that unless regional security problems are addressed, there will be no security and stability in the Mediterranean, which in turn will affect Europe. In these case studies, I aimed to give an accurate account of each hijack from the departing destination till the end of the drama. Secondly, I tied to analyse each situation carefully, to comment and conclude on each particular case. Thirdly, I analysed and reflected on the regional problems where the hijacks took place and analysed the correlation between these particular cases and the problems that the Mediterranean was facing at that time. Finally, I concluded with my reflections on what has changed in the Mediterranean and the world to account for the fall in hijackings. The research was based on published sources, oral interviews, contemporary newspapers, reports, television programmes, discussions with security experts, police reports, Proces Verbal, court reports from experts, press releases and official correspondence. Court reports from experts were given top priority.