CYPRIOT authorities have decided to exclude from consideration the political asylum application of the Egyptian hijacker who forced a domestic Egyptair flight to land in Larnaca nearly two months ago, his lawyer Robertos Vrahimis said on Friday.
This means they won’t even be reviewing it as there is a legal precedent that asylum cannot be granted to someone who has committed a serious crime, he told the Cyprus Mail.
Seif Eldin Mustafa appeared in court on Friday and the session adjourned until May 20 to give time to the Egyptian authorities to furnish their Cypriot counterparts with the necessary paperwork for extradition.
Mustafa’s defence claimed that the delay in conveying the papers was deliberate to extend their client’s detention.
This was rejected by the court, which pointed out that the procedure must be carried out within 60 days and so far 44 have already elapsed.
The 59-year-old man appeared in court in jeans and a white poloneck with the phrase “Release the 63 Egyptian girls you liars,” written in front with a marker.
Egypt has asked for Mustafa’s extradition in connection with the March 29 hijacking.
It proved later that he had hijacked the flight using a fake suicide belt he threatened to detonate in a bid to force the pilot to divert to Turkey, Greece or Larnaca.
In April, Mustafa formally applied for political asylum.
Cyprus does not extradite suspects to countries where they may face the death penalty.
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