FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 6, 1998                                                                                       (202) 514-2008

                                                                                                                                           TDD (202) 514-1888




COURT OF APPEALS FOR DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA


AFFIRMS CONVICTION OF AIRCRAFT HIJACKER





	WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The Court of Appeals for the District of
Columbia has unanimously upheld the conviction of a member of the
Abu Nidal organization who was convicted of air piracy here in
July 1996.

	The defendant, Omar Rezaq, 38, was convicted by a jury trial
for his role in the November, 1985 terrorist hijacking of
Egyptair Flight 648.

	Rezaq and two other terrorists from the Abu Nidal
organization had hijacked the aircraft shortly after it departed
from Athens, Greece, en route to Cairo, Egypt.

	Five passengers, including three Americans and two Israelis,
were shot by Rezaq in the course of the hijacking.  One American,
Scarlett Rogenkamp, who was an U.S. Air Force civilian employee,
and one Israeli, Nitzan Mendelsohn, were killed by Rezaq.

	Rezaq managed to escape from the plane.  Soon afterward, he
was captured by Maltese authorities and charged with murder and a
number of other crimes but not air piracy.  After serving seven
years in prison he was released by Maltese authorities.




	In July 1993 special agents of the FBI arrested Rezaq in
Nigeria and transported him to the United States to stand trial
for air piracy.

	The jury rejected Rezaq's defense claims of a traumatic
stress disorder and U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberet sentenced
Rezaq to life in prison.

	The appeal was handled by U.S. Department of Justice
attorneys John  F. De Pue and Scott J. Glick.

###


98-051