EgyptAir flight from Cairo to New York delayed 'due to security concerns'

The reported alert came after another EgyptAir plane was hijacked on an internal flight between Alexandria and Cairo

A picture taken on September 30, 2015 shows Egypt Air planes on the tarmac of Cairo Airport. (AFP/Getty Images)

An EgyptAir flight from Cairo to New York has reportedly been delayed over security fears after another plane was hijacked.

Reuters quoted two security sources saying the precautions regarding flight MS985 was directly related to the incident unfolding in Cyprus, where negotiations were continuing with a man holding seven people on board.

There were conflicting reports over the suspect's motivation but the Cyprus state broadcaster reported that he was demanding the release of female prisoners in Egypt, where the government is facing an Islamist militant insurgency based in the Sinai Peninsula.

Nicos Anastasiades, the President of Cyprus, said the hijacking was “not something that has to do with terrorism” as local officials claimed the incident was linked to personal issues with a woman living on the island.

Flight 181 took off from the Mediterranean coastal city of Alexandria en route to Cairo with at least 55 passengers, including 26 foreigners, and a seven-member crew.

The plane landed at Larnaca airport shortly before 9am local time on Tuesday morning and the majority of those on board were released as negotiations started.

Seven hostages remained on board in the early afternoon, including the captain, co-pilot, a stewardess and three passengers who were thought to be foreign.

A statement from the Egyptian Civil Aviation Ministry said passengers had included eight Americans, four Britons, four Dutch, two Belgians, a French national, an Italian, two Greeks and one Syrian. Officials did not give the nationalities of those who remained on the plane.

The incident raises more questions about security at Egyptian airports, five months after a Russian aircraft crashed over Egypt's Sinai Peninsula minutes after it took off from Egypt's Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh.

All 224 people on board were killed in the crash, which Isis claimed it had caused using a bomb planted on board.

Additional reporting by agencies