The mysterious disappearance of a Malaysia Airlines plane with 239 people on board was not likely caused by a terrorist attack, Interpol said Tuesday after revelations two passengers had used stolen European passports.
Ronald Noble, head of Interpol, told reporters both passengers were Iranians thought to be illegal immigrants who had travelled from Doha to Kuala Lumpur with their Iranian passports before using stolen ID for the MH370 flight to Beijing that disappeared over the South China Sea Saturday.
"The more information we get, the more we are inclined to conclude it was not a terrorist incident," Noble told reporters, as a photograph of the two suspects was briefly shown.
Based on their Iranian passports, Noble said one of the suspects was believed to be called Pouri Nour Mohammadi, 18, and the other thought to be Delavar Seyed Mohammad Reza, 29.
Malaysian police had earlier confirmed that one of the suspects was an Iranian illegal immigrant, but had said he was 19.
According to Noble, the young man had been on his way "to Frankfurt, Germany in order to be with his mother."
"It is part of a human smuggling issue and not a part of a terrorist issue," Noble said, adding that Interpol was more and more "certain that these individuals are probably not terrorists."
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