India, Oct. 22 -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi to light a ceremonial torch alongside Indian pilot Captain Smit Machchhar at Israel's Independence Day celebrations, honouring the captain for his role in preventing a suspected terror attack aboard a Dubai-Tel Aviv flight.

Machchhar, a Gujarat-born captain with flydubai, was seriously injured in late September when his Omani co-pilot allegedly attacked him inside the cockpit. Despite his injuries and the aircraft's rapid descent, he managed to open the cockpit door, allowing passengers and crew members to intervene and restrain the attacker.

The aircraft subsequently made an emergency landing in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.

In a post on X on T...