A plane owned by North Carolina–based Samaritan’s Purse was hijacked Tuesday in South Sudan by an armed man who forced a mid-flight diversion before being arrested. No injuries were reported.
The Cessna Grand Caravan was carrying medical supplies from Juba to Maiwut when the gunman, identified as Yasir Mohammed Yusuf, emerged from the rear cabin and demanded the pilot fly to Chad.
Instead, the pilot safely landed in Wau, where security forces quickly detained the hijacker. Only the pilot and one crew member were on board.
Yusuf is from the disputed Abyei Administrative Area, an oil-rich region claimed by both Sudan and South Sudan. Hijackings of humanitarian aircraft are uncommon but underscore lingering instability in the region.
Boone-based Samaritan’s Purse said it will continue medical flights in South Sudan and praised authorities for the rapid response as the investigation moves forward in a press statement they released today:
“A Samaritan’s Purse plane, which is based and operating only within Africa, was involved in a hijacking incident on Tuesday, Dec. 2, with a pilot and one staff member on board. The Caravan aircraft was en route to Maiwut, South Sudan, to deliver medicines to be used by our mobile medical unit based there. The pilot was eventually able to land the plane in Wau, South Sudan, where the armed hijacker was taken into custody by the National Security Service of South Sudan.
We praise God that no one was seriously injured, and we are grateful to the security forces for their support and swift action on the ground to resolve the situation and bring a safe outcome.”
