- By Swati Singh
- Thu, 29 Aug 2024 01:37 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
Netflix is gearing up for the release of its upcoming movie IC 814- The Kandahar Hijack which is based on the real-life incident when the Indian Airlines Flight 814 (IC 814) was hijacked on December 24, 1999, while flying from Kathmandu to Delhi, and was diverted to Kandahar, Afghanistan, after multiple stops. Here is everything you need to know about the entire hijack and how 37-year-old Captain Devi Sharan and first officer Rajinder Kumar saved hundreds of lives.
Indian Airlines Flight 814- Real Story Behind The Kandahar Hijack
Indian Airlines Flight 814 was hijacked by 5 masked men on December 24, 1999, and forced to land in Kandahar, Afghanistan, which was under Taliban control. The hijackers released 27 passengers in Dubai, but killed and injured others. Indian authorities, including Ajit Doval, were prevented from intervening by Taliban fighters and suspected ISI officers, who were present at the airport, hindering a swift resolution to the crisis.
The hijacking of Indian Airlines Flight 814 was a deliberate act of terrorism aimed at securing the release of three notorious Islamist militants held in Indian prisons. The hijackers, affiliated with the Harkat-ul-Mujahideen (HuM), demanded the liberation of Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, Masood Azhar, and Mushtaq Ahmed Zargar, all of whom were linked to various terrorist organisations and had been involved in previous attacks.
The subsequent hostage crisis lasted for seven tense days, ultimately culminating in the Indian government's concession to release the three terrorists in exchange for the safety of the passengers. However, this decision would later prove to have severe consequences, as the released terrorists went on to orchestrate and participate in numerous devastating attacks, including the 2001 Indian Parliament attack, the 2002 kidnapping and murder of Daniel Pearl, the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, the 2016 Pathankot attack and the 2019 Pulwama attack.
The hijacking of Flight 814 is now widely regarded as one of the millennium attack plots, a series of coordinated terrorist operations carried out by al-Qaeda-linked groups in late December 1999 and early January 2000, highlighting the far-reaching and devastating impact of this singular event.