111 passengers on board a hijacked Afriqiyah Airways were released, the company's Safety Director told the Libya Observer.

Mukhtar Al-Mahmoudi said the hijackers are still holding the pilot and co-pilot hostages. He confirmed that the two pro-Gaddafi hijackers threatened to blow up the Airbus A320 with home-made bomb called Jalatina if their demands were not met.

"They diverted the flight to Malta and are demanding asylum there," Al-Mahmoudi said, indicating that the two hijackers raised the green flag and chanted pro-Gaddafi slogans. 

The airplane was on an internal flight from Sabha's Taminhint airport to Tripoli-based Mitiga airport  when the terror act took place.