Police officers stand guards by the fence of the airport as a hijacked EgyptAir aircraft is seen after landing at Larnaca Airport in Cyprus Tuesday, March 29, 2016. The EgyptAir plane was hijacked on... (Associated Press) 
 
 Police officers stand guards by the fence of the airport as a hijacked EgyptAir aircraft is seen after landing at Larnaca Airport in Cyprus Tuesday, March 29, 2016. The EgyptAir plane was hijacked on Tuesday while flying from the Egyptian Mediterranean coastal city of Alexandria to the capital, Cairo,... (Associated Press) 
 
 LARNACA, Cyprus (AP) — An Egyptian man hijacked an EgyptAir plane Tuesday and forced it to land in Cyprus, where most passengers were eventually allowed to get off, though four crew members and three passengers remained on board with the hijacker, Egyptian and Cypriot officials said. 
 
 The man's motivation was unclear, but Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades said the hijacking was "not something that has to do with terrorism" and a Cyprus government official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing investigation, said the man "seems (to be) in love." 
 
 A civil aviation official, also speaking on condition of anonymity because he wasn't allowed to disclose details of ongoing negotiations, said the man gave negotiators the name of a woman who lives in Cyprus and asked to give her an envelope. It's unclear what relationship she and the man have. 
 
 Flight MS181 took off from the Mediterranean coastal city of Alexandria en route to Cairo with at least 55 passengers, including 26 foreigners, and a seven-member crew. 
 
 An official with flight-tracking website FlightRadar24 said the plane showed no immediate signs of distress. The flight between Alexandria and Cairo normally takes about 30 minutes. 
 
 There was some confusion about the hijacker's identity. At a news conference in Cairo, Egypt's Civil Aviation minister, Sharif Fathi, refused to identify him. 
 
 Earlier, Egyptian government spokesman Hossam al-Queish said the hijacker was Ibrahim Samaha, but an Egyptian woman who identified herself as Samaha's wife said her husband is not the hijacker and was on his way to Cairo so he could fly to the U.S. to attend a conference. 
 
 The woman, who identified herself only as Nahla, told the Egyptian private TV network ONTV in a phone interview that her husband had never been to Cyprus and that a photo on Egyptian and regional TV channels that supposedly showed the hijacker was not him. Later, the official Middle East News Agency gave a different name for the hijacker. 
 
 Al-Queish, the government spokesman, also told the private CBC TV network that authorities could not confirm that the hijacker had explosives on him. An earlier statement from the Egyptian Aviation Ministry said the man claimed he had a belt with explosives. 
 
 The plane landed at the airport in the southern Cypriot city of Larnaca, also on the Mediterranean. A statement from the Egyptian Civil Aviation Ministry statement said the foreigners on board included eight Americans, four Britons, four Dutch, two Belgians, a French national, an Italian, two Greeks and one Syrian. Three other foreigners could not be identified. Fathi did not give the nationalities of those who remained on the plane. 
 
 The incident raises more questions about security at Egyptian airports, five months after a Russian aircraft crashed over Egypt's Sinai Peninsula minutes after it took off from Egypt's Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh. 
 
 All 224 people on board were killed in the crash. Russia later said an explosive device brought down the aircraft and the extremist Islamic State group took responsibility. 
 
 ___ 
 
 Hendawi reported from Cairo. Maggie Michael in Cairo contributed to this report. ||||| Image copyright EPA Image caption The alleged hijacker demanded to see his ex-wife as soon as the plane landed in Cyprus 
 
 Egypt has asked Cyprus to extradite the man accused of hijacking an airliner on Tuesday, Egyptian prosecutors say. 
 
 Seif al-Din Mustafa, described by Cypriot officials as being mentally disturbed, used a fake suicide belt to hijack the Egyptair flight and forced it to fly to Larnaca. 
 
 Egyptian prosecutors said Mr Mustafa should be handed over under a 1996 bilateral extradition treaty. 
 
 He has been remanded in custody in Cyprus for eight days. 
 
 Possible charges include air piracy, kidnapping and threatening behaviour. 
 
 Mr Mustafa did not speak at his court appearance, but gave a victory sign as he was driven away by police. 
 
 The hijacking is believed to have been motivated by a row between Mr Mustafa, 58, and his ex-wife, who lives in Cyprus. Cypriot authorities have said the hijacking was not terrorism-related. 
 
 My 'selfie' with hijacker 
 
 Hijacker jokes divide social media 
 
 How the hijacking unfolded 
 
 EgyptAir flight MS181 was carrying 56 passengers from Alexandria to Cairo, along with six crew and a security official, when it was diverted to Cyprus. 
 
 Media caption EgyptAir Flight MS181 hijacking suspect passes through airport security 
 
 During a stand-off lasting more than six hours, almost all passengers and crew were freed unharmed as authorities negotiated with Mr Mustafa. 
 
 One person, apparently a crew member, climbed out of a cockpit window, minutes before the suspect walked calmly out of the plane to surrender. 
 
 Cypriot Foreign Minister Ioannis Kasoulides said Mr Mustafa had initially asked to speak with his Cypriot ex-wife, who was brought to the airport by police, before making a series of "incoherent" demands. 
 
 Image copyright AP Image caption Mustafa giving a V-sign to journalists moments after appearing tired and drawn in court 
 
 President Nicos Anastasiades had responded to a reporter's question about whether the hijacker was motivated by romance, by laughing and saying: "Always there is a woman involved." 
 
 A photograph showing a British man posing with the hijacker inside the plane has been widely circulated. Ben Innes told the Sun newspaper he was trying to get a better look at Mr Mustafa's belt. 
 
 Egyptian press: Incident will affect tourism 
 
 Describing it as "the easiest and the most foolish hijacking of a plane", private newspaper al-Masry al-Youm recalled the "critical" timing of the incident as Egypt was trying to recover from the downing of a Russian plane over Sinai in October 2015. 
 
 State-owned al-Gomhuria wrote that it had "left a scar on Egypt's heart". But it added that "the greatest loss is that tourists will be scared and many countries have delayed their decision to end the ban they imposed on flights to Egypt". 
 
 Private al-Youm al-Sabi sees "a blow to tourism in Egypt". 
 
 "Lax security at Egyptian airports, either on the ground or on board, tarnishes the reputation of Egyptian airlines and will also impact considerably on tourism in Egypt," echoed liberal opposition newspaper al-Wafd. 
 
 Airport security 
 
 A statement from Egypt's civil aviation ministry said 26 foreign passengers were on board, including eight Americans, four Britons, four Dutch citizens, two Belgians, two Greeks, a French national, an Italian and a Syrian. 
 
 Media caption A man was seen fleeing from a cockpit window shortly before the hijacker surrendered 
 
 Egyptian authorities said security measures had been "fully implemented" before the flight. 
 
 CCTV footage released by the interior ministry shows Mr Mustafa being frisked at two security checks and passing a slim bag through X-ray machines at Alexandria's Borg El Arab airport. 
 
 The BBC's Youssef Taha says Egypt has taken steps to improve airport security after Russian Metrojet Flight 9268 was blown up over Sinai last October. 
 
 They include an extra $1bn (£690m) a year and a deal with British consultancy Control Risks to review procedures at Cairo, Sharm El-Sheikh and Marsa Alam airports. 
 
 Despite this, our correspondent says checks remain inconsistent, with many VIPs and MPs refusing to be searched and airport and airline staff routinely bypassing full security screening.
– An EgyptAir plane with about 60 people aboard was hijacked Tuesday while flying from the coastal city of Alexandria to Cairo, and then forced to land in Cyprus, reports the AP. Fortunately, it appears to have ended without violence after hours of negotiations, with all aboard freed and the hijacker arrested. Details were still emerging about his motivation, but Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades previously said it was "not something that has to do with terrorism," reports the AP, and a Cyprus government official said the man "seems (to be) in love." A civil aviation official said the man gave negotiators the name of a woman who lives in Cyprus and asked to give her an envelope. It's unclear what relationship she and the man have, but some reports say she is his estranged wife. Asked whether the hijacking involved romance, the Cyprian president laughed and said, "Always, there is a woman involved." However, much confusion surrounded the incident, with the BBC citing reports that he had asked for the release of female prisoners in Egypt. There was also some confusion about the identity of the hijacker, who reportedly claimed to have explosives on him and had allowed most of the passengers to leave the plane upon landing. At a news conference prior to the arrest, Egypt's Civil Aviation minister refused to identify him. Earlier, an Egyptian government spokesman offered up a name, but an Egyptian woman who identified herself as his wife said her husband is not the hijacker and was on his way to Cairo so he could fly to the US to attend a conference. Flight MS181 took off from the Mediterranean city of Alexandria with at least 55 passengers, including 26 foreigners, and a seven-member crew.