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KUWAIT CITY, Aug 5: A Kuwaiti boy caused panic at Nice Airport on July 22, 2018 when he sent messages about the presence of a bomb to a number of fellow passengers on a flight to Fiumicino Airport in Italy, reports Al-Qabas daily. French newspaper Nice-Matin reported that the boy, identified as Ali, sent two messages in English to a number of passengers. The first message said, “There is a bomb on this plane heading to Rome.” The second message was: “Go to the bathroom and we’ll talk. There’s a bomb.” The passengers quickly told the crew, who then informed police and all 79 passengers were asked to disembark.

However, it took only a few minutes before news leaked to another plane preparing to depart for Rome with 179 passengers. The messages appeared on phone screens of some passengers, prompting police to order disembarkation of all passengers from the second plane without hesitation. When police checked the names of passengers, they found out that Ali sent the two messages.

Ali did not hesitate in admitting that he sent the two messages to the astonishment of his parents. Ali sent the text messages to a number of passengers by using AirDrop application and Bluetooth, without thinking about the dangerous consequences especially in a city like Nice which had earlier been targeted by terrorists. The Court of Nice was informed about the incident but the boy was not detained because he is a minor.

Police confiscated his telephone and in order to ensure safety of passengers, precautionary measures were taken and the plane was inspected by explosives detection dogs. According to the same newspaper, the case was shelved after the police and judiciary considered it a foolish joke made by an immature boy, hence, judicial follow up is unnecessary. Since the two planes were delayed for three hours, Ali’s family had no choice but to travel to Rome by road. The boy remained in custody of police for 12 hours.

By Jaber Al-Humoud Al-Seyassah Staff and Agencies