22 passengers escape from a plane that made an emergency landing in Spain after a passenger who pretended to be ill was tricked

Palma de Mallorca police on Saturday arrested 12 people who escaped from a plane that made an emergency landing at the city's airport in the Balearic archipelago, and are still searching for 12 others.

Police said that the plane, which was on a flight between Morocco and Turkey, was allowed to make an emergency landing in Palma de Mallorca after receiving a report that one of its passengers was ill.

"Twelve people have been arrested and the search for 12 others continues," said Ina Calvo, the representative of the Spanish government in the Balearic Islands, noting that what happened was "unprecedented."

The police said that the passenger who caused what happened "first appeared to be in a coma due to a drunken fit and was taken in an ambulance to the hospital with a companion."

But upon arrival it was found that he was in perfect health.

The man was arrested on charges of "aiding illegal immigration and violating the foreigners' law", while the one who was accompanying him fled as soon as he arrived at the hospital.

Calvo explained that while the supposed patient was being evacuated from the plane, 21 passengers took the opportunity to escape, descended on the runway and escaped.

The police began searches at the airport that paralyzed his movement, which did not resume until around midnight, after a four-hour hiatus.

Another person was arrested for "insulting and assaulting" inside the plane.

Calvo reported that a total of 24 people, all Moroccans, except for one Palestinian, were involved in the incident, pointing out that investigators are seeking to find out "whether what happened at the airport was a pre-planned incident or just an isolated incident."

"We have no information yet that would allow us to confirm that what happened was a planned operation (...) the investigation is continuing," she said.

She noted that the plane remained on the runway for a "certain period" before passengers decided to flee it.

It reported that the fugitives are being pursued for not respecting air safety regulations and for entering illegally into Spanish territory.

According to Flightradar24, a website that monitors air traffic, the plane that made an emergency landing in Palma de Mallorca was an Airbus A320 belonging to Air Arabia (Morocco) and was on a flight between Casablanca and Istanbul.

As a result of the accident, 13 planes bound for Palma were diverted to other airports, and 16 departures experienced significant delays, according to airport authorities.

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