Egyptian plane hijacker was identified as Seif Eddin Moustafa - an Egyptian national - not Ibrahim Samaha as previously announced, reliable sources said, quoting security agencies. 

Samaha was one of the kidnapped passengers not the hijacker, the sources said.

Samaha is the head of food monitoring department at Alexandria University, Dean of veterinary medicine faculty at Alexandria University Ashraf Nazem said.

Samaha boarded the plane from Alexandria's Borg el Arab to Cairo with an aim to head for the US to attend a scientific conference.

During a press conference on Tuesday, 
Egyptian Minister of Civil Aviation Sherif Fathi refused to name the hijacker for security reasons.

Cyprus broadcasting (CYBC) said the hijacker of the Egyptian plane may have personal motives.

He had an ex-wife in Cyprus, CYBC said. Reports said the hijacker’s ex-wife was being escorted to the airport, The Cyprus Mail reported.

Witnesses said the hijacker threw a letter on the apron of the airport in Larnaca, written in Arabic, asking that it be delivered to his ex-wife, who is Cypriot.

Earlier in the day, the EgyptAir Airbus A320, with 50 passengers on board in addition to seven crew members and one security member, was hijacked and forced to land in Cyprus.

Flight MS181 passenger plane was originally travelling from Alexandra's Borg El Arab Airport to Cairo. 

All passengers, apart from three foreigners and seven crew members, of the hijacked Egyptian plane were released.

The Cypriot Larnaca airport was closed and scheduled flights diverted elsewhere over the Egyptian plane hijacking.

Source: MENA