Benjamin Netanyahu, Prime Minister of Israel, praised Captain Smith Machhar, the Indian pilot of a Flydubai flight, saying that despite being severely wounded, he resisted the attacker and opened the cockpit door so passengers and crew could subdue the attacker.

Netanyahu said the pilot, with his action, saved the lives of 174 passengers, including Israeli citizens, and called him a “true hero.”

Babak Eshaqi, a reporter for Iran International, reports