Sources close to the United Arab Emirates have criticised Israel for describing potential flydubai services as “rescue flights”, accusing it of exploiting the September 30 cockpit attack for political purposes.

A UAE source told The Jerusalem Post that the term suggests a country where it is dangerous to be, which “is simply not the case”. The UAE had agreed to Israel’s requests for extra security measures, and flydubai had agreed to revised procedures, but Israel rejected them.

Separately, the UAE’s Anwar Gargash and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the attack on flydubai flight FZ1073 as terrorism on Friday. The co-pilot, reported to be Omani, stabbed the captain, sending the Dubai-Tel Aviv flight into a dive before passengers intervened and it diverted to Tabuk in Saudi Arabia.

Gargash praised Captain Smit Machchhar as a hero. El Al meanwhile cancelled two Dubai rescue flights after the UAE withdrew landing approval for Israeli carriers.