Hijackers are cracking up 8212; Gill

NEW DELHI, DEC 26: Former Director General of Punjab Police and the man who was responsible for breaking the backbone of the separatist movement in the state, KPS Gill, is appalled at the way the Flight IC-814 crisis is being handled. Gill, who negotiated with hijackers in two similar incidents 8212; on March 27, 1993, when an IA flight from Chennai from New Delhi was hijacked by a lone, unarmed man, and diverted to Amritsar, and later, on April 24, when a Srinagar-bound IA aircraft from Delhi was hijacked again. The hijacker, Syed-Ibn-Aseer, was shot dead by NSG commandos.

In the earlier incident, the hijacker had surrendered. Gill believes the hijackers on the plane that8217;s now in Kandahar embarked on this misadventure with no plans whatsoever. 8220;They probably thought they would get some kind of sanctuary once they reached Taliban-held territory but the Taliban was forced to turn them away because of intense international pressure on them. So, you have a peculiar situation where the Taliban is sympatheticbut cannot dare show it.8221;

Gill is convinced the hijackers are beginning to crack up under pressure. 8220;Hijacking is a nerve-wracking experience for both the terrorists and victims. The fact that they released many passengers after the murder of the young boy shows they are now going through a period of remorse after the act of violence .8221;