Indonesia Probes Second Bomb Threat On Saudia Hajj Flight

Barnama

6 days ago

By Mohd Iswandi Kasan Anuar
JAKARTA, June 23 (Bernama) -- A second bomb threat targeting Saudia has been reported, Indonesian authorities said Monday.
The threat, made on Saturday via voice communication routed through a Virtual Private Network (VPN)-based radio system, prompted an emergency landing in North Sumatra.
bootstrap slideshow
The affected flight, Saudia flight SVA 5688, operating the Jeddah-Muscat-Surabaya route, was carrying 376 Hajj pilgrims from East Java and 11 crew members.
The aircraft landed safely at Kualanamu International Airport in North Sumatra at 9.30 am. All passengers and crew were evacuated and underwent security checks, police and military officials said.
Police counter-terrorism unit Densus 88 spokesperson Adjunct Senior Commissioner Mayndra Eka Wardhana said the message was transmitted while the aircraft was flying over Indian airspace.
'The threat was sent via voice communication using a VPN-based radio system that allows ground-to-ground and cross-border communication,' he told local broadcaster MetroTV.
A joint inspection involving the military, police, and other agencies found no explosives or suspicious items on board, according to the Armed Forces Information Centre (Puspen TNI).
'By 7.15 pm, the screening process was completed with no threats detected,' said the centre's head, Major General Kristomei Sianturi, in a statement. The flight resumed at 3 am local time on Sunday after the aircraft was declared safe.