Plane Hijacker Pleaded Not To Die

Police investigator Vakis Prodromou said Egyptian authorities have given assurances Seif Eddin Mustafa won't face the death penalty and will receive a fair trial in Cairo.

The lawyer for a man who hijacked a plane and diverted it to Cyprus says his client's life is in danger if he is sent back to Egypt.

Robertos Brahimis made the statement about Seif Eddin Mustafa during his extradition hearing at a Cypriot court.

He said that Mustafa claims to have been tortured on many occasions while in the custody of the Egyptian authorities in the past.

Brahimis repeated Mustafa's fears that he won't get a fair trial, will be mistreated again and could even be killed because of his political beliefs.

But when asked whether Mustafa may be tortured if he's extradited, Prodromou said he can't know how he'll be treated once he's in custody.

Prodromou said Mustafa had written a statement he gave to authorities during the hijacking stating that he opposes the Egyptian government.

Written in Arabic, it also said citizens are "arrested and imprisoned unfairly" and face "injustice and insecurity".

He also demanded 63 female dissidents "unjustly detained" in Egypt be freed. 

The 59-year-old sparked an international incident when he forced an EgyptAir plane to land at Larnaca airport on 29 March. 

He had told the plane's crew he was wearing a suicide belt and would blow up the plane unless they agreed to his demands.

The belt was discovered to be fake - and 26-year-old British man Ben Innes made headlines when he posed with his captor for a photograph.

The six-hour standoff ended peacefully when Mustafa was arrested after all 72 passengers and crew aboard the Airbus A320 were released. 

Cypriot authorities have described Mustafa as "not mentally stable" because of "unreasonable" demands he made during the hijacking.