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Egyptian Air Force Captain Who Defected to Israel Explains Reason

March 26, 1964
See Original Daily Bulletin From This Date

Captain Mahmoud Hilmi, the Egyptian Air Force pilot who startled both Israel and the Arab world last January by defecting to Israel in his plane, told a press conference today that he did so because he opposed Egypt’s participation in the Yemen civil war.

Asked why he chose Israel, he replied: “I had two possibilities, an Arab country or Israel. The Arab countries are unstable, therefore I chose Israel.”

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