View source for Entebbe raid

{{Short description|1976 Israeli counter-terrorist operation}}
{{About|the Israeli counter-terrorist operation in 1976|the military engagement of the Uganda–Tanzania War in 1979|Battle of Entebbe}}
{{pp-extended|small=yes}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2024}}
{{EngvarB|date=July 2014}}
{{Infobox military conflict
| conflict          = Operation Thunderbolt
| partof            = the [[Arab–Israeli conflict]] and the [[Cold War]]
| image             = Operation Thunderbolt. IV.jpg
| caption           = Israeli commandos with a [[Mercedes-Benz 600]] resembling the one owned by Ugandan dictator [[Idi Amin]], used by [[Sayeret Matkal]] to deceive Ugandan troops during the raid<ref>{{Cite news |last=Times |first=Terence Smith Special to The New York |date=13 July 1976 |title=Israelis Say Raider Impersonated Amin |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1976/07/13/archives/new-jersey-pages-israelis-say-raider-impersonated-amin-israeli.html |access-date=2023-10-05 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>
| date              = {{Start and end date|1976|07|03|1976|07|04|df=yes}}
| place             = [[Entebbe International Airport]], Uganda
| coordinates       = {{Coord|0|02|43|N|32|27|13|E|source:itwiki_type:event|display=inline,title}}
| result            = Israeli victory{{bulletedlist
| 102 of 106 hostages rescued<ref name=MHS>{{cite web |title=Tactical Combat Casualty Care – November 2010 |last=McRaven |first=Bill |url=http://www.health.mil/Libraries/101101_TCCC_Course_Materials/0203PP02_Care_Under_Fire_101101.pptx |work=MHS US Department of Defense |access-date=15 July 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110516122925/http://health.mil/Libraries/101101_TCCC_Course_Materials/0203PP02_Care_Under_Fire_101101.pptx |archive-date=16 May 2011}}</ref>
| ~25% of Uganda's military aircraft destroyed<ref>[https://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/july/4/newsid_2786000/2786967.stm 1976: Israelis rescue Entebbe hostages], [[BBC]]</ref>}}
| combatant1        = {{flag|Israel}}<br />'''Supported by:'''<br />{{flag|Kenya}}
| combatant2        = {{flagicon image|PFLP-GC Flag.svg}} [[Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine – External Operations|PFLP–EO]]<br />[[File:Revolutionäre Zellen.svg|18px|link=]] [[Revolutionary Cells (German group)|Revolutionary Cells]]<br />{{flagdeco|Uganda}} [[Second Republic of Uganda|Uganda]]
| commander1        = {{unbulletedlist
| {{flagdeco|Israel}} [[Dan Shomron]]
| {{flagdeco|Israel}} [[Yekutiel Adam]]
| {{flagdeco|Israel}} [[Benny Peled]]
| {{flagicon|Israel}} [[Yonatan Netanyahu]]{{KIA}}}}
| commander2        = {{unbulletedlist
| {{flagicon image|PFLP-GC Flag.svg}} [[Wadie Haddad]]
| [[File:Revolutionäre Zellen.svg|18px|link=]] [[Wilfried Böse]]{{KIA}}
| {{flagdeco|Uganda}} [[Idi Amin]]}}
| strength1         = {{circa|100}} Israeli commandos (plus aerial crew and support personnel)
| strength2         = 7 hijackers: 5 Palestinians, 2 Germans<br />100+ Ugandan soldiers
| casualties1       = 1 killed (Y. Netanyahu)<br />5 wounded
| casualties2       = 7 hijackers killed<br />45 soldiers killed<ref>{{Cite book |last=Dunstan |first=Simon |url=https://www.worldcat.org/title/649079751 |title=Entebbe: the most daring raid of Israel's special forces |date=2011 |publisher=Rosen Pub |isbn=978-1-4488-1868-6 |series=The most daring raids in history |location=New York |oclc=649079751}}</ref><hr/>11–30 Ugandan aircraft destroyed<ref name="Brzoska, Michael 1994 p. 203">{{Cite book |last1=Brzoska |first1=Michael |title=Arms and warfare: escalation, de-escalation, and negotiation |last2=Pearson |first2=Frederic S. |date=1994 |publisher=University of South Carolina Press |isbn=978-0-87249-982-9 |series=Studies in international relations |location=Columbia, S.C}}</ref>
| casualties3       = 4 hostages killed (incl. [[Murder of Dora Bloch|Dora Bloch]])<ref name="britannica.com">{{cite encyclopedia|url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/188804/Entebbe-raid|title=Entebbe raid|encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica|date=26 June 2023 }}</ref><ref name="news.bbc.co.uk">{{cite news|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/july/4/newsid_2786000/2786967.stm|title=BBC on This Day – 4 – 1976: Israelis rescue Entebbe hostages|work=BBC News}}</ref><br />10 hostages wounded
| campaignbox       = {{Campaignbox Palestinian insurgency in South Lebanon}}
}}
{{Location map many | Africa
| relief   = yes
| width    = 300px
| caption  = Sites associated with Operation Entebbe
| lat1_deg = 32.096944
| lon1_deg = 20.269444
| label1   = [[Benina International Airport|Benghazi]]
| lat4_deg = 37.936389
| lon4_deg = 23.947222
| label4   = [[Athens International Airport|Athens]]
| lat2_deg = 32.009444
| lon2_deg = 34.882778
| label2   = [[Ben Gurion International Airport|Tel Aviv]]
| lat3_deg = 0.044722
| lon3_deg = 32.443056
| label3   = [[Entebbe International Airport|Entebbe]]
|position1 = left
|position2 = right}}

The '''Entebbe raid''', also known as the '''Operation Entebbe''' and officially [[Code name|codenamed]] '''Operation Thunderbolt''' (also retroactively codenamed '''Operation Yonatan'''), was a 1976 Israeli counter-terrorist mission in [[Second Republic of Uganda|Uganda]]. It was launched in response to the hijacking of an international civilian passenger flight (an [[Airbus A300]]) operated by [[Air France]] between the cities of Tel Aviv and Paris. During a stopover in Athens, the aircraft was hijacked by two Palestinian [[Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine – External Operations|PFLP–EO]] and two German [[Revolutionary Cells (German group)|RZ]] members,<ref name="Hartuv" /> who diverted the flight to [[History of Libya under Muammar Gaddafi|Libya]] and then to Uganda, where they landed at [[Entebbe International Airport]] to be joined by other terrorists. Once in Uganda, the group enjoyed support from Ugandan dictator [[Idi Amin]].<ref name="Hostages freed as israelis raid uganda airport">{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1976/07/04/archives/hostages-freed-as-israelis-raid-uganda-airport-commandos-in-3.html |title=Hostages Freed as Israelis Raid Uganda Airport; Commandos in 3 Planes Rescue 105-Casualties Unknown Israelis Raid Uganda Airport And Free Hijackers' Hostages |last=Smith |first=Terence |work=The New York Times |access-date=4 July 2009 |date=4 July 1976}}</ref>

A week earlier, on 27 June, an [[Air France]] [[Airbus A300]] [[jet airliner]] with 248 passengers had been [[Aircraft hijacking|hijacked]] by two members of the [[Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine – External Operations]] (PFLP-EO) under orders of [[Wadie Haddad]] (who had earlier broken away from the [[Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine|PFLP]] of [[George Habash]]),<ref name="Hartuv" /> and two members of the German [[Revolutionary Cells (RZ)|Revolutionary Cells]]. The hijackers took hostages with the stated objective of compelling the release of 40 Palestinian and affiliated militants imprisoned in Israel as well as the release of 13 prisoners in four other countries.<ref name="Keesing's">{{cite journal |date=August 1976 |title=Hijacking of Air France Airbus by Followers of Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine – Israeli Action to liberate Hostages held at Entebbe Airport ... |url=https://web.stanford.edu/group/tomzgroup/pmwiki/uploads/1377-1976-08-KS-a-RCW.pdf |journal=Keesing's Record of World Events |volume=22 |page=27888 |access-date=23 September 2014}}</ref> Over 100 Ugandan soldiers were deployed to support the hijackers after the flight landed, and Amin, who had been informed of the hijacking from the beginning,<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/24/books/review/operation-thunderbolt-by-saul-david.html |title='Operation Thunderbolt,' by Saul David |last=Furst |first=Alan |date=2016 |work=The New York Times |access-date=8 January 2018 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> had personally welcomed the terrorists at Entebbe.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/idi-amin-s-son-my-dream-is-to-apologize-personally-to-family-of-entebbe-victims-1.5396014 |title=Idi Amin's Son: My Dream Is to Apologize Personally to Family of Entebbe Victims |work=Ha'aretz |date=14 June 2016}}</ref> After moving all of the hostages to a defunct airport, the hijackers separated all Israelis and several non-Israeli Jews from the larger group of passengers, subsequently moving them into a separate room.<ref name="Freed Hostages Tell Their Story" /><ref name="Dunstan2011">{{cite book |author=Dunstan |first=Simon |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KrL9bHLpOq4C&pg=PA20 |title=Entebbe: The Most Daring Raid of Israel's Special Forces |publisher=The Rosen Publishing Group |year=2011 |isbn=978-1-4488-1868-6 |pages=20–24 |access-date=4 July 2012}}</ref><ref name="Ensalaco2008">{{cite book |author=Ensalaco |first=Mark |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=i7KIa3VuD04C&pg=PA96 |title=Middle Eastern Terrorism: From Black September to September 11 |publisher=University of Pennsylvania Press |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-8122-4046-7 |pages=96– |access-date=4 July 2012}}</ref> Over the next two days, 148 non-Israeli hostages were released and flown out to Paris.<ref name="Dunstan2011" /><ref name="Ensalaco2008" /><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.jewishtelegraph.com/enteb_1.html |title=Entebbe; Thirty Years On; miracle on the runway |publisher=Jewish Telegraph |year=2006 |access-date=20 June 2011}}</ref> The 94 remaining passengers, most of whom were Israelis, and the 12-member Air France crew continued to be held as hostages.<ref name="Scharfstein1994">{{cite book |author=Scharfstein |first=Sol |url=https://archive.org/details/understandingisr0000scha |title=Understanding Israel |publisher=KTAV Publishing House, Inc. |year=1994 |isbn=978-0-88125-428-0 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/understandingisr0000scha/page/118 118]– |access-date=5 July 2012 |url-access=registration}}</ref><ref name="Dunstan2009">{{Cite book |last=Dunstan |first=Simon |author-link=Simon Dunstan |title=Israel's Lighting Strike, The raid on Entebbe 1976 |year=2009 |publisher=[[Osprey Publishing]]; Osprey Raid Series No. 2 |isbn=978-1-84603-397-1 |page=24}}</ref>

Representatives within the Israeli government initially debated over whether to concede or respond by force, as the hijackers had threatened to kill the 106 captives if the specified prisoners were not released. Acting on intelligence provided by [[Mossad]], the decision was made to have the Israeli military undertake a rescue operation.<ref name="Mossad took photos">{{cite news |year=2006 |title=Mossad took photos, Entebbe Operation was on its way. |publisher=[[Ynetnews]] | url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3269662,00.html |access-date=6 July 2009}}</ref> The Israeli plans included preparation for an armed confrontation with Amin's [[Uganda Army (1971–1980)|Uganda Army]].<ref name="Back to Entebbe">{{cite news |date=29 June 2006 |url=https://www.jpost.com/Magazine/Features/Back-to-Entebbe |title=Back to Entebbe |last=Feldinger |first=Lauren Gelfond |work=[[The Jerusalem Post]] | access-date=4 July 2009}}</ref>

Initiating the operation at nightfall on 3 July 1976, Israeli transport planes flew 100 commandos over {{convert|4000|km|mi}} to Uganda for the rescue effort. Over the course of 90 minutes, 102 of the hostages were rescued successfully, with three having been killed. One of the dead hostages, [[Murder of Dora Bloch|Dora Bloch]], was murdered by Ugandan authorities at a hospital in [[Kampala]] shortly after the Israeli rescue operation; she had fallen ill during the hijacking and was removed from the plane for treatment prior to the commandos' arrival. The Israeli military suffered five wounded and one killed; [[Yonatan Netanyahu]] was Israel's sole fatality of Operation Entebbe, and had led [[Sayeret Matkal]] during the rescue effort – he was the older brother of [[Benjamin Netanyahu]], who would later become Israel's prime minister.<ref name="The Knesset at Sixty">{{cite web |url=https://www.knesset.gov.il/lexicon/eng/entebbi_eng.htm |title=Operation Entebbe |publisher=The Knesset at Sixty |access-date=4 July 2009}}</ref> The Israeli commandos killed all of the hijackers and 45 Ugandan soldiers, and 11 of Uganda's<ref name="britannica.com" /><ref name="news.bbc.co.uk" /> [[Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-17|MiG-17s]] and [[Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21|MiG-21s]] were destroyed.<ref name="Brzoska, Michael 1994 p. 203" /> Over the course of the operation in Uganda, Israel received support from neighbouring [[Kenya]]. [[Idi Amin]], the then President of Uganda, subsequently issued orders for the Ugandan army to kill all Kenyans living in Uganda,<ref name="Ube">{{Cite web |last=Bayerlin |first=Ulrich |date=1977 |title=Abhandlungen: Die israelische Befreiungsaktion von Entebbe in völkerrechtlicher Sicht |trans-title=Essays: The Israeli liberation operation of Entebbe from an international law perspective |url=http://www.zaoerv.de/37_1977/37_1977_2_a_213_243.pdf |website=zaoerv.de |publisher=Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law |language=de}}</ref> leading to the deaths of 245 Kenyan-Ugandans and the exodus of around 3000 Kenyans from Uganda.<ref name="Keesing27891" />

== Hijacking ==
{{Infobox aircraft occurrence
| occurrence_type = Hijacking
| name            = Air France Flight 139
| image           = Air France Airbus A300B4-203 F-BVGG at John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) on 1 February 1976.jpg
| caption         = F-BVGG, the [[Air France]] [[Airbus A300]] involved, in February 1976
| date            = 27 June 1976
| type            = Hijacking
| site            = Greek airspace
| origin          = [[Ben Gurion International Airport|Ben Gurion Int'l Airport]], Israel
| stopover        = [[Ellinikon International Airport|Athens (Ellinikon) Int'l Airport]], Greece
| destination     = [[Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport|Charles De Gaulle Int'l Airport]], France
| fatalities      = 4
| injuries        = 10
| aircraft_type   = [[Airbus A300]]B4-203
| operator        = [[Air France]]
| tail_number     = F-BVGG
| occupants       = 260
| passengers      = 248
| crew            = 12
| survivors       = 256
}}

On 27 June 1976, [[Air France]] Flight 139, an [[Airbus A300]]B4-203 [[Aircraft registration|registered]] as {{Airreg|F|BVGG}} with [[serial number]] 019, departed from [[Tel Aviv]], Israel, carrying 246 mainly Jewish and [[Israelis|Israeli]] passengers and a crew of 12.<ref name="Rosenkovitch">{{cite news |author=Lavie |first=Aviv |date=31 July 2003 |title=Surviving the myth |url=https://www.haaretz.com/surviving-the-myth-1.95789 |access-date=23 September 2014 |work=Haaretz}}</ref><ref name="How the Rescue Took Place">{{cite news |url=https://www.jta.org/1976/07/06/archive/how-the-rescue-took-place |title=How the Rescue Took Place |work=Jewish Telegraphic Agency |date=5 July 1976 |access-date=23 September 2014}}</ref> The plane flew to Athens, Greece, where it picked up an additional 58 passengers, including four hijackers.<ref name="General Dan Shomron" />{{#tag:ref|Sources state varying numbers of passengers, between 228 and 246; the higher figure is taken from ''The New York Times''. |group="nb"|name="PassengerNote"}} It departed for Paris at 12:30&nbsp;pm. Just after takeoff, the flight was [[Aircraft hijacking|hijacked]] by two [[Palestinian people|Palestinians]] from the [[Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine – External Operations]] (PFLP-EO), Jayel al-Arja and Fayez Abdul-Rahim al Jaber, and two Germans, [[Wilfried Böse]] and [[Brigitte Kuhlmann]], from the German [[Revolutionary Cells (German group)|Revolutionary Cells]].<ref name="Saul Book">{{Cite book |last=Saul |first=David |title=Operation Thunderbolt: Flight 139 and the Raid on Entebbe Airport, the Most Audacious Hostage Rescue Mission in History |publisher=Back Bay Books |year=2017 |isbn=978-0-316-24539-5}}</ref> The hijackers diverted the flight to [[Benghazi]], Libya.<ref name="Entebbe's unsung hero.">{{cite news |url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3270314,00.html |title=Special: Entebbe's unsung hero. |last=Ben |first=Eyal |date=3 July 2006 |work=Ynetnews |access-date=4 July 2009}}</ref> There it was held on the ground for seven hours for refuelling. During that time the hijackers released British-born Israeli citizen Patricia Martell, who pretended to have a [[miscarriage]].<ref name="Mossad took photos" /><ref name="Entebbe Thirty Years On">{{cite news |url=http://www.jewishtelegraph.com/enteb_2.html |title=Entebbe Thirty Years On: Mancunian On Board |work=Jewish Telegraph |access-date=22 September 2014}}</ref> The plane left Benghazi and at 3:15&nbsp;pm on the 28 June, more than 24 hours after the flight's original departure, it arrived at [[Entebbe International Airport]] in Uganda.<ref name="Entebbe's unsung hero." />

=== Situation at Uganda's Entebbe International Airport ===
At Entebbe, the four hijackers were joined by at least four others, supported by the forces of Uganda's president, [[Idi Amin]].<ref name="auto">{{cite news |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/july/4/newsid_2786000/2786967.stm |title=1976: Israelis rescue Entebbe hostages |work=BBC News |access-date=27 December 2012 |archive-date=23 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121023233100/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/july/4/newsid_2786000/2786967.stm |url-status=live |date=4 July 1976}}</ref> The hijackers transferred the passengers to the transit hall of the disused former airport terminal where they kept them under guard for the following days. Amin came to visit the hostages almost on a daily basis, updating them on developments and promising to use his efforts to have them freed through negotiations.<ref name="Rosenkovitch" />

On 28 June, a PFLP-EO hijacker issued a declaration and formulated their demands. In addition to a ransom of US$5&nbsp;million for the release of the airplane, they demanded the release of 53 Palestinian and pro-Palestinian militants, 40 of whom were prisoners in Israel.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Dunstan |first1=Simon |title=Entebbe: The Most Daring Raid of Israel's Special Forces |date=2011 |publisher=Rosen |location=New York |pages=17–18}}</ref> They threatened that if these demands were not met, they would begin to kill hostages on 1 July 1976.<ref name="Detailed Story">{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1755&dat=19760713&id=7-QhAAAAIBAJ&pg=3641,5254231 |title=Detailed Story Of Dramatic Israeli Raid |work=Sarasota Herald-Tribune |date=13 July 1976 |access-date=22 September 2014}}</ref>

=== Separation of hostages ===
On 29 June, after Ugandan soldiers had opened an entrance to a room next to the crowded waiting hall by destroying a separating wall, the hijackers separated the Israelis (including those holding dual citizenship) from the other hostages{{#tag:ref|Claims by various authors that the separation was made between Jews and non-Jews<ref>{{cite web |title=1976 Operation Entebbe |url=http://www.idfblog.com/about-the-idf/history-of-the-idf/1976-operation-entebbe/ |website=IDF blog |publisher=Israeli Defense Forces |access-date=23 September 2014 |archive-date=12 October 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171012105140/https://www.idfblog.com/about-the-idf/history-of-the-idf/1976-operation-entebbe/ |url-status=dead}}</ref> are in conflict with eyewitness accounts<ref name="Freed Hostages Tell Their Story">{{cite news |title=Freed Hostages Tell Their Story |url=https://www.jta.org/1976/07/02/archive/freed-hostages-tell-their-story |access-date=23 September 2014 |agency=Jewish Telegraphic Agency |date=2 July 1976}}</ref><ref name="Ofer1976" /><ref name=Moufflet>{{cite book |last1=Moufflet |first1=Claude |title=Otages à Kampala |date=1976 |publisher=Presses de la Cité |page=82 |language=fr}}</ref><ref name="Epstein" /><ref>{{cite news |last1=Jerozolimski |first1=Ana |title=Ada Lazarovitz (46), que hace 30 años fuera una de las rehenes en el avión de Air France secuestrado por terroristas en Entebbe, recuerda su liberación. |url=http://letras-uruguay.espaciolatino.com/jerozolimski/ada_lazarovitz_46.htm |website=Espacio Latino |publisher=Semanario Hebreo |access-date=23 September 2014 |language=es |date=13 July 2006}}</ref> and later they were expressly disclaimed by several former hostages as a "myth" or a manipulation by "sensation-hungry journalists and film-makers."<ref name="Hartuv" /><ref name="Rosenkovitch" /><ref name=Goldberg /> |group="nb"|name="SeparationNote"}} and told them to move to the adjoining room.<ref name="Ofer1976">{{cite book |author=Ofer |first=Yehuda |title=Operation Thunder: The Entebbe Raid. The Israeli's Own Story |date=1976 |publisher=Penguin |isbn=978-0-14-052321-8 |pages=46–47}}</ref> As they did so, a [[The Holocaust|Holocaust]] survivor showed hijacker Wilfried Böse a [[Identification of inmates in Nazi concentration camps|camp registration number tattooed]] on his arm. Böse protested "I'm no Nazi!&nbsp;... I am an idealist."<ref>{{cite magazine |first=David |last=Tinnin |title=Like Father |magazine=Time |date=8 August 1977 |page=2 |url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,915234-2,00.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101018032711/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0%2C9171%2C915234-2%2C00.html |archive-date=18 October 2010 |url-status=dead}} – A review of ''Hitler's Children'' by Julian Becker; {{cite book |first=David |last=Frum |year=2000 |title=How We Got Here: The 70s the Decade That Brought You Modern Life – For Better or Worse |url=https://archive.org/details/howwegothere70sd00frum |url-access=registration |publisher=Basic Books |isbn=978-0-465-04196-1 |page=[https://archive.org/details/howwegothere70sd00frum/page/342 342]}}</ref> In addition, five non-Israeli hostages – two ultra-orthodox Jewish couples<ref name="Rosenkovitch" /> from the US and Belgium<ref name="Hartuv" /> and a French resident of Israel – were forced to join the Israeli group.<ref name="Epstein" /> According to Monique Epstein Khalepski, the French hostage among the five, the captors had singled them out for questioning and suspected them of hiding their Israeli identities.<ref name="Epstein">{{cite news |date=11 July 1976 |title=La aventura del secuestro de Entebbe, contada por una protagonista |trans-title=The adventure of the Entebbe kidnapping, told by a protagonist |url=http://elpais.com/diario/1976/07/11/sociedad/205884021_850215.html |access-date=23 September 2014 |work=El País |language=es}}</ref> On the other hand, according to French hostage Michel Cojot-Goldberg, the captors failed to identify at least one Israeli among the passengers who was a military officer with dual citizenship then using his non-Israeli passport and he was later freed as part of the second release of non-Israeli hostages.<ref name=Goldberg>{{cite book |last1=Goldberg |first1=Michel |title=Namesake |date=1984 |publisher=Corgi |page=122}}</ref> US citizen Janet Almog, Frenchwoman Jocelyne Monier (whose husband or boyfriend was Israeli),<ref name="New York Magazine">{{cite news |author=Ross |first=Philip |date=2 August 1976 |title=The Illustrated Story of the Great Israeli Rescue |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=A-QCAAAAMBAJ&q=%22jocelyne+monier%22&pg=PA38 |access-date=23 September 2014 |work=New York Magazine}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://hfj.stparchive.com/Archive/HFJ/HFJ09101976P06.php |title=Almogs Retell Hijack Tale |work=Heritage Florida Jewish News |date=10 September 1976 |access-date=23 September 2014 |archive-date=3 February 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150203195615/http://hfj.stparchive.com/Archive/HFJ/HFJ09101976P06.php |url-status=dead}}</ref> and French-Israeli dual citizen Jean-Jacques Mimouni, whose name had not been called up during the reading of the original passport-based list, reportedly joined the Israeli hostage group by their own choice.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Prince-Gibson |first1=Eetta |date=7 March 2013 |title=Entebbe's Forgotten Dead |url=http://www.tabletmag.com/jewish-news-and-politics/126190/entebbes-forgotten-dead?all=1 |access-date=23 September 2014 |work=Tablet}}</ref>

=== Release of most non-Israeli hostages ===
On 30 June, the hijackers released 48 hostages. The released were picked from among the non-Israeli group – mainly elderly and sick passengers and mothers with children. Forty-seven of them were flown by a chartered Air France [[Boeing 747]] out of Entebbe to Paris, and one passenger was treated in hospital for a day.<ref name="Saul Book" /> On 1 July, after the Israeli government had conveyed its agreement to negotiations, the hostage-takers extended their deadline to noon on 4 July and released another group of 100 non-Israeli captives who again were flown to Paris a few hours later. Among the 106 hostages staying behind with their captors at Entebbe airport were the 12 members of the Air France crew who refused to leave,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kaplan |first=David |date=3 August 2006 |title=A historic hostage-taking revisited |url=https://www.jpost.com/features/a-historic-hostage-taking-revisited |access-date=4 July 2018 |website=The Jerusalem Post}}</ref> about ten young French passengers, and the Israeli group of some 84 people.<ref name=MHS /><ref name="Hostages freed as israelis raid uganda airport" /><ref name="Entebbe's unsung hero." /><ref name="The Entebbe Rescue Mission">{{cite web |url=https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Terrorism/entebbe.html |title=The Entebbe Rescue Mission |work=Israel Defense Forces |publisher=Jewish Virtual Library |access-date=4 July 2009}}</ref>

== Israeli response ==

=== Diplomatic efforts ===
In the week before the raid, Israel tried using political avenues to obtain the release of the hostages. Many sources indicate that the [[Cabinet of Israel|Israeli cabinet]] was prepared to release Palestinian prisoners if a military solution seemed unlikely to succeed. A retired IDF officer, Baruch "Burka" Bar-Lev, had known Idi Amin for many years and was considered to have a strong personal relationship with him. At the request of the cabinet, he spoke with Amin on the phone many times, trying to gain the release of the hostages, without success.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20070930121748/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,914380,00.html "Vindication for the Israelis"]. ''Time''. 26 July 1976.</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20071016182522/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,914382,00.html "War of Words over a Tense Border"]. ''Time''. 26 July 1976.</ref> The Israeli government also approached the United States government to deliver a message to Egyptian president [[Anwar Sadat]], asking him to request that Amin release the hostages.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://foia.state.gov/searchapp/DOCUMENTS%5Ckissinger%5C0000C08F.pdf |title=Conversation between Henry Kissinger and Israeli Ambassador Simch Dinitz, 30 June 1976 |access-date=24 July 2011 |archive-date=13 September 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190913032323/https://foia.state.gov/searchapp/DOCUMENTS%5Ckissinger%5C0000C08F.pdf |url-status=dead}}</ref> Prime minister [[Yitzhak Rabin]] and defence minister [[Shimon Peres]] spent one week disagreeing on whether to give in to the hijackers' demands (Rabin's position) or not, to prevent more terrorism (Peres' position).<ref name="Telegraph_David">{{cite news |author=David |first=Saul |author-link=Saul David |date=27 June 2015 |title=Israel's raid on Entebbe was almost a disaster |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/israel/11701064/Israels-raid-on-Entebbe-was-almost-a-disaster.html |access-date=9 February 2018 |work=[[The Daily Telegraph]]}}</ref>

At the 1 July deadline<ref>Grimes, Paul. [https://www.nytimes.com/1976/07/30/archives/rescuing-the-entebbe-hostages.html "Rescuing the Entebbe Hostages"]. ''The New York Times''. Friday, 30 July 1976. (The Weekend, p. 51).</ref> the Israeli cabinet offered to negotiate with the hijackers to extend the deadline to 4 July. Amin also asked them to extend the deadline until that date. This meant he could take a diplomatic trip to [[Port Louis]], Mauritius, to officially hand over chairmanship of the [[Organisation of African Unity]] to [[Seewoosagur Ramgoolam]].<ref>Lipkin-Shakhak, Tali. [http://www.historama.com/online-resources/articles/israel/dan_shomron_on_1976_entebbe_raid.html "The Forgotten Hero of Entebbe"]. Historama. 16 June 2006.</ref> This extension of the hostage deadline proved crucial to providing Israeli forces enough time to get to Entebbe.<ref name="General Dan Shomron" />

On 3 July at 18:30, the Israeli cabinet approved a rescue mission,<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1976/07/04/archives/hostages-freed-as-israelis-raid-uganda-airport-commandos-in-3.html |title=Hostages Freed as Israelis Raid Uganda Airport |last=Terence |first=Smith |work=The New York Times |date=4 July 1976 |access-date=20 May 2010}}</ref> presented by [[Aluf|Major General]] [[Yekutiel Adam]] and Brigadier General [[Dan Shomron]]. Shomron was appointed as the operation commander.<ref name=ediary>{{cite web |url=http://dover.idf.il/IDF/console/article_page.aspx?doc_id=23016&lang=english |title=Israel Defense Forces&nbsp;– Entebbe Diary |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081209010738/http://dover.idf.il/IDF/console/article_page.aspx?doc_id=23016&lang=english |archive-date=9 December 2008}}</ref>

=== Egyptian–PLO involvement and failure of diplomacy ===
As the crisis unfolded, attempts were made to negotiate the release of the hostages. According to declassified diplomatic documents, the Egyptian government under Sadat tried to negotiate with both the PLO and the Ugandan government.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://aad.archives.gov/aad/createpdf?rid=172177&dt=2082&dl=1345 |title=Herman Eilts (US Ambassador to Egypt) to Secretary of State, 6 July 1976 |access-date=24 July 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://aad.archives.gov/aad/createpdf?rid=181803&dt=2082&dl=1345 |title=Herman Eilts (US Ambassador to Egypt) to Secretary of State, 9 July 1976 |access-date=24 July 2011}}</ref> PLO chairman [[Yasser Arafat]] sent his political aide [[Hani al-Hassan]] to Uganda as a special envoy to negotiate with the hostage takers and with Amin.<ref name="Hartuv" /> However, the PFLP-EO hijackers refused to see him.<ref name=NouvelObs>{{cite news |last1=Chabalier |first1=Hervé |title=Israël: le prix d'un exploit |newspaper=Le Nouvel Observateur |date=12 July 1976 |page=25 |url=http://referentiel.nouvelobs.com/archives_pdf/OBS0609_19760712/OBS0609_19760712_025.pdf |language=fr}}</ref>

=== Israel's military preparations ===
When Israeli authorities failed to negotiate a political solution, they decided that their only option was an attack to rescue the hostages. Lt. Col. {{ill|Joshua Shani|he|יהושע שני}}, lead pilot of the operation, later said that the Israelis had initially conceived of a rescue plan that involved dropping naval commandos into [[Lake Victoria]]. The commandos would have ridden rubber boats to the airport on the edge of the lake. They planned to kill the hijackers and after freeing the hostages, they would ask Amin for passage home. The Israelis abandoned this plan because they lacked the necessary time and also because they had received word that Lake Victoria was inhabited by the [[Nile crocodile]].<ref>{{cite book |title=The Israel Defense Forces: A People's Army |last=Williams |first=Louis |year=2000 |publisher=iUniverse |isbn=978-0-595-14353-5 |page=131 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gSsxPDuQy8YC&q=%22rubber+boats%22+Entebbe+%22Lake+Victoria%22&pg=PA131 |access-date=27 December 2012}}</ref>

[[Amnon Biran]], the mission's intelligence officer, later stated that the proper layout of the airport was unknown, as was the exact location of the hostages and whether the building had been prepared with explosives.<ref name="Telegraph_David" />

==== Aircraft refuelling ====
While planning the raid, the Israeli forces had to plan how to refuel the [[Lockheed C-130 Hercules]] aircraft they intended to use while en route to Entebbe. The Israelis lacked the logistical capacity to [[Aerial refueling|aerially refuel]] four to six aircraft so far from Israeli airspace. While several East African nations, including the logistically preferred choice Kenya, were sympathetic, none wished to incur the wrath of Amin or the Palestinians by allowing the Israelis to land their aircraft within their borders.{{citation needed|date=June 2020}}

The raid could not proceed without assistance from at least one East African government. The Israeli government secured permission from Kenya for the IDF task force to cross Kenyan airspace and refuel at what is today [[Jomo Kenyatta International Airport]]. Kenyan [[Ministry of Agriculture (Kenya)|Minister of Agriculture]] [[Bruce Mackenzie (British intelligence operative)|Bruce MacKenzie]] persuaded Kenyan President [[Jomo Kenyatta]] to permit Mossad to collect intelligence prior to the operation, and to allow the [[Israeli Air Force]] access to the Nairobi airport.<ref name="jpost1">{{cite news |last=Melman |first=Yossi |url=https://www.jpost.com/Diplomacy-and-Politics/Analysis-Israel-and-Kenya-blood-ties-326880 |title=A history of cooperation between Israel and Kenya |work=The Jerusalem Post |access-date=26 September 2013}}</ref> MacKenzie's support for the operation came after [[Sir Maurice Oldfield]], the then head of [[United Kingdom|Britain's]] [[MI6]] intelligence agency, put his contacts in Mossad in touch with MacKenzie, who had been an MI6 contact for some time.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Pearce |first1=Martin |title=Spymaster: the Life of Britain's Most Decorated Cold War Spy and Head of MI6, Sir Maurice Oldfield |date=2016 |publisher=Bantam Press |location=London |page=285 |edition=1}}</ref> The Jewish owner of the Block hotels chain in Kenya, along with other members of the Jewish and Israeli community in [[Nairobi]], may also have used their political and economic influence to help persuade Kenya's President Jomo Kenyatta to help Israel.<ref>{{cite book |title=Entebbe: The Most Daring Raid of Israel's Special Forces |last=Dunstan |first=Simon |year=2011 |publisher=Rosen Publishing Group |isbn=978-1-4488-1868-6 |page=53 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KrL9bHLpOq4C&q=Entebbe+%22Jomo+Kenyatta+airport%22&pg=PA53 |access-date=27 December 2012}}</ref>

Uganda's ambassador to [[Lesotho]], [[Isaac Lumago]],<ref name= eichner>{{cite news |url=https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4824146,00.html |title=Idi Amin's son: 'My dream is to meet with Entebbe victims' families to apologize' |last=Eichner |first=Itamar |date=4 July 2016 |newspaper=Ynetnews |access-date=12 August 2019}}</ref> overheard some of the details of the operation from [[Kenya Air Force]] officers who were discussing the possibility of Israeli compensation for the assistance and forwarded the information to Ugandan commander [[Isaac Maliyamungu]]. Maliyamungu did not alert Amin or take any action on the intelligence,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://cija.ca/operation-thunderbolt/ |title=Operation Thunderbolt: Daring and Luck |last=Alexander |first=Ben |date=4 July 2016 |publisher=[[Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs]] | access-date=17 April 2019 |archive-date=17 April 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190417165936/https://cija.ca/operation-thunderbolt/ |url-status=dead}}</ref> allegedly dismissing the report as "gasiya" (rubbish).<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.monitor.co.ug/Magazines/PeoplePower/Maliyamungu-gatekeeper-Amin--man-Farouk-Minawa/689844-5230706-56fjh9z/index.html |title=Rise of Maliyamungu from gatekeeper to Amin's right-hand man |last=Ocen |first=Felix |date=11 August 2019 |website=Daily Monitor |access-date=12 August 2019}}</ref> According to Amin's son, Jaffar Remo, the Ugandan president still managed to receive Lumago's warning via telephone and, after completing his responsibilities at the OAU meeting, boarded a plane and flew back to Uganda.<ref name= eichner /> An ex-agent of Uganda's intelligence service, the [[State Research Bureau (organisation)|State Research Bureau]], also claimed that Amin was informed by Lumago of the imminent raid. The agent stated that Amin was terrified of possible reprisals in case his troops actually fought the Israeli military, allegedly resulting in his ordering that the [[Uganda Army (1971–1980)|Uganda Army]] should not open fire on Israeli aircraft during a possible raid.{{sfn|Seftel|2010|p=216}}

==== Mossad intelligence ====
Mossad built an accurate picture of the whereabouts of the hostages, the number of hijackers, and the involvement of Ugandan troops, based on information from the released hostages in Paris.<ref name="TimeMagazine">{{Cite magazine |url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,914272,00.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050114102848/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,914272,00.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=14 January 2005 |title=The Rescue: 'We Do the Impossible' |date=12 July 1976 |magazine=Time |access-date=26 July 2009}}</ref> Further, Israeli firms had been involved in construction projects in Africa during the 1960s and 1970s: while preparing the raid, the Israeli army consulted with [[Solel Boneh]], a large Israeli construction firm that had built the terminal where the hostages were held.<ref>{{cite web |title=Wars and Operations: Operation Thunderball ("Entebbe") |url=http://www.iaf.org.il/4694-33040-he/IAF.aspx |publisher=[[Israel Air Force]](official website) |language=he}}</ref> While planning the military operation, the IDF erected a partial replica of the airport terminal with the assistance of civilians who had helped build the original.{{citation needed|date=June 2020}}

IDF major [[Muki Betser]] later remarked in an interview that Mossad operatives extensively interviewed the hostages who had been released. He said that a French-Jewish passenger who had a military background and "a phenomenal memory" had provided detailed information about the number of weapons carried by the hostage-takers.<ref name="betzer">{{Cite news |date=4 July 2006 |title=Israel marks 30th anniversary of Entebbe |url=https://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2006-07-04-palestinian-pressure_x.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060706021957/https://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2006-07-04-palestinian-pressure_x.htm |archive-date=6 July 2006 |work=USA Today |agency=Associated Press}}</ref>

==== Task force ====
The Israeli ground task force numbered approximately 100 personnel, and comprised the following elements:<ref name="ediary" />

===== Ground command and control =====
:This small group comprised the operation and overall ground commander, [[Dan Shomron|Brigadier General Dan Shomron]], the air force representative Colonel Ami Ayalon, and the communications and support personnel.

===== Assault =====
:A 29-person assault unit led by Lt. Col. [[Yonatan Netanyahu]] – this force was composed entirely of commandos from [[Sayeret Matkal]], and was given the primary task of assaulting the old terminal and rescuing the hostages. Major Betser led one of the element's assault teams, and took command after Lt. Col. Netanyahu was killed.

===== Securers =====
# The [[Paratroopers Brigade|Paratroopers]] force led by [[Matan Vilnai|Col. Matan Vilnai]] – tasked with securing the civilian airport field, clearing and securing the runways, and protection and fuelling of the Israeli aircraft in Entebbe.
# The [[Golani Brigade|Golani]] force led by [[Uri Sagi|Col. Uri Sagi]] – tasked with securing the C-130 Hercules aircraft for the hostages' evacuation, getting it as close as possible to the terminal and boarding the hostages; also with acting as general reserves.
# The [[Sayeret Matkal]] force led by [[Shaul Mofaz|Major Shaul Mofaz]] – tasked with clearing the military airstrip, and destroying the squadron of [[MiG]] fighter jets on the ground, to prevent any possible interceptions by the [[Ugandan Air Force|Uganda Army Air Force]]; also with holding off hostile [[ground forces]] from the city of Entebbe.

== Raid ==
[[File:Entebbe Aerial.jpg|thumb|Aerial photo of the city of [[Entebbe]] and the [[Entebbe International Airport]] at sunset]]

=== Attack route ===
Taking off from [[Sharm el-Sheikh]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.knesset.gov.il/lexicon/eng/entebbi_eng.htm |title=Operation Entebbe}}</ref> the task force flew along the international flight path over the [[Red Sea]], mostly flying at a height of no more than 30&nbsp;m (100&nbsp;ft) to avoid radar detection by Egyptian, Sudanese, and Saudi Arabian forces. Near the south outlet of the Red Sea the C-130s turned south and crossed into Ethiopian territory, passing west of [[Djibouti]]. From there, they went to a point northeast of Nairobi, Kenya. They turned west, passing through the [[East African Rift|African Rift Valley]] and over [[Lake Victoria]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.historynet.com/rescue-at-entebbe.htm |title=Rescue at Entebbe |publisher=HistoryNet |date=2 April 2018 |access-date=17 April 2021}}</ref><ref name="Ninety Minutes at Entebbe">{{Cite book |last=Stevenson |first=William |title=Ninety Minutes at Entebbe |publisher=[[Bantam Books]] | location=New York |year=1976 |page=[https://archive.org/details/90minutesatenteb00stev/page/100 100] |isbn=978-0-553-10482-0 |url=https://archive.org/details/90minutesatenteb00stev/page/100}}</ref>

Two [[Boeing 707]] jets followed the cargo planes. The first Boeing contained medical facilities and landed at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi, Kenya. The commander of the operation, General Yekutiel Adam, was on board the second Boeing, which circled over Entebbe Airport during the raid.<ref name="ediary" />

The Israeli forces landed at Entebbe on 3 July at 23:00 [[Israel Standard Time|IST]], with their [[cargo bay]] doors already open. Because the proper layout of the airport was not known, the first plane almost taxied into a ditch.<ref name="Telegraph_David" /> A black [[Mercedes-Benz 600|Mercedes]] car that looked like President Idi Amin's vehicle and Land Rovers that usually accompanied Amin's Mercedes were brought along. The Israelis hoped they could use them to bypass security checkpoints. When the C-130s landed, Israeli assault team members drove the vehicles to the terminal building in the same fashion as Amin.<ref name="Back to Entebbe" /><ref name="Larry Domnitch">{{cite web |url=http://www.jewishpress.com/pageroute.do/39910/ |title=Remembering Entebbe, Larry Domnitch |date=1 July 2009 |publisher=The Jewish Press |access-date=4 July 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110323123727/http://www.jewishpress.com/pageroute.do/39910 |archive-date=23 March 2011}}</ref> As they approached the terminal, two Ugandan sentries, aware that Idi Amin had recently purchased a white Mercedes, ordered the vehicles to stop.<ref>{{cite web |author=Kaplan |first=David E. |date=27 December 2012 |title=A historic hostage-taking revisited |url=https://www.jpost.com/LandedPages/PrintArticle.aspx?id=30529 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131002150201/http://www.jpost.com/LandedPages/PrintArticle.aspx?id=30529 |archive-date=2 October 2013 |access-date=27 December 2012 |work=The Jerusalem Post}}</ref> The first commandos shot the sentries using silenced pistols.<ref name="Back to Entebbe" /> This was against the plan and against the orders – the Ugandans were to be ignored, as they were believed not to be likely to open fire at this stage.<ref name="Telegraph_David" /> An Israeli commando in one of the following Land Rovers opened fire with an unsuppressed rifle.<ref name="Back to Entebbe" /> Fearing the hijackers would be alerted prematurely, the assault team quickly approached the terminal.<ref name="Larry Domnitch" />

=== Hostage rescue ===
[[File:Entebbe Airport DF-ST-99-05538.jpg|thumb|left|A 1994 photograph of the old terminal with a [[U.S. Air Force]] [[Lockheed C-130 Hercules|C-130 Hercules]] parked in front. Bullet holes from the 1976 raid are still visible.]]
The Israelis left their vehicles and ran towards the terminal. The hostages were in the main hall of the airport building, directly adjacent to the runway. Entering the terminal, the commandos shouted through a megaphone, "Stay down! Stay down! We are Israeli soldiers," in both [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]] and English. Jean-Jacques Maimoni, a 19-year-old French immigrant to Israel, stood up and was killed when Muki Betser and another soldier mistook him for a hijacker and fired at him.<ref name="Entebbe's unsung hero." /> Another hostage, Pasco Cohen, 52, was also fatally wounded by gunfire from the commandos.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.jerusalemdiaries.com/article/6 |title=Remembering Entebbe |publisher=Jerusalem Diaries |date=3 July 2001 |access-date=27 December 2012}}</ref> In addition, a third hostage, 56-year-old Ida Borochovitch, a Russian Jew who had [[Aliyah|emigrated to Israel]], was killed by a hijacker in the crossfire.<ref name="Bacos, 2016">{{cite news |last1=Berg |first1=Raffi |title=Entebbe pilot Michel Bacos 'saw hostage murdered' |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-36584346 |access-date=3 July 2016 |work=BBC News |date=3 July 2016}}</ref>

According to hostage Ilan Hartuv, Wilfried Böse was the only hijacker who, after the operation began, entered the hall housing the hostages. At first he pointed his [[AK-47|Kalashnikov]] rifle at hostages, but "immediately came to his senses" and ordered them to find shelter in the restroom, before being killed by the commandos. According to Hartuv, Böse fired only at Israeli soldiers and not at hostages.<ref name="Hartuv">{{cite news |author=Melman |first=Yossi |date=8 July 2011 |title=Setting the record straight: Entebbe was not Auschwitz |url=https://www.haaretz.com/weekend/week-s-end/setting-the-record-straight-entebbe-was-not-auschwitz-1.372131 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121105002656/http://www.haaretz.com/weekend/week-s-end/setting-the-record-straight-entebbe-was-not-auschwitz-1.372131 |archive-date=5 November 2012 |access-date=27 December 2012 |work=Haaretz}}</ref>

At one point an Israeli commando called out in Hebrew, "Where are the rest of them?" referring to the hijackers.<ref>{{cite book |title=Warrior Elite: 31 Heroic Special-Ops Missions from the Raid on Son Tay to the Killing of Osama Bin Laden |last=Cawthorne |first=Nigel |year=2011 |publisher=Ulysses Press |isbn=978-1-56975-930-1 |page=[https://archive.org/details/warriorelite31he0000cawt/page/57 57] |url=https://archive.org/details/warriorelite31he0000cawt |url-access=registration |quote=Where are the rest of them? entebbe. |access-date=27 December 2012}}</ref> The hostages pointed to a connecting door of the airport's main hall, into which the commandos threw several [[hand grenade]]s. They then entered the room and shot dead the three remaining hijackers, ending the assault.<ref name="General Dan Shomron">{{Cite news |url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/obituaries/article3440122.ece |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100523125028/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/obituaries/article3440122.ece |archive-date=23 May 2010 |title=General Dan Shomron |date=27 February 2008 |work=The Times |access-date=4 July 2009 |location=London |first=Fiona |last=Hamilton |url-status=dead}}</ref> Meanwhile, the other three C-130 Hercules aeroplanes had landed and unloaded [[armoured personnel carrier]]s to provide defence during the anticipated hour of refuelling. The Israelis then destroyed Ugandan MiG fighter planes to prevent them from pursuing, and conducted a sweep of the airfield to gather intelligence.<ref name="General Dan Shomron" />

=== Departure ===
[[File:Flickr - Government Press Office (GPO) - Rescued Air France Passengers.jpg|thumb|Rescued passengers welcomed at Ben Gurion Airport]]
After the raid, the Israeli assault team returned to their aircraft and began loading the hostages. Ugandan soldiers shot at them in the process. The Israeli commandos returned fire, inflicting casualties on the Ugandans. During this brief but intense firefight, Ugandan soldiers fired from the [[Control tower|airport control tower]]. At least five commandos were wounded, and the Israeli unit commander, Yonatan Netanyahu, was killed. Israeli commandos fired light machine guns and a [[rocket-propelled grenade]] back at the control tower, suppressing the Ugandans' fire. According to one of Idi Amin's sons, the soldier who shot Netanyahu, a cousin of the Amin family, was killed by return fire.<ref name= eichner /> The Israelis finished evacuating the hostages, loaded Netanyahu's body into one of the planes, and left the airport.<ref>{{cite book |title=Entebbe: The Most Daring Raid of Israel's Special Forces |last=Dunstan |first=Simon |year=2011 |publisher=Rosen Publishing Group |isbn=978-1-4488-1868-6 |pages=51–53 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KrL9bHLpOq4C&q=Entebbe+%22Jomo+Kenyatta+airport%22&pg=PA53 |access-date=27 December 2012}}</ref> The entire operation lasted 53&nbsp;minutes – of which the assault lasted only 30&nbsp;minutes. All seven hijackers present, and 45 Ugandan soldiers, were killed.<ref name="General Dan Shomron" /> Eleven<ref name="news.bbc.co.uk" /> Soviet-built [[Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-17|MiG-17]] and [[Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21|MiG-21]] fighter planes of the Uganda Army Air Force were destroyed on the ground at Entebbe Airport.<ref name="Brzoska, Michael 1994 p. 203" /><ref name="auto" /> Out of the 106 hostages, 3 were killed, 1 was left in Uganda (74-year-old [[Murder of Dora Bloch|Dora Bloch]]), and approximately 10 were wounded. The 102 rescued hostages were flown to Israel via Nairobi, Kenya, shortly after the raid.<ref name="The Knesset at Sixty" />

=== Ugandan reaction ===

[[File:Flickr - Government Press Office (GPO) - Dora Bloch's Family Pays Last Respects.jpg|thumb|upright|Relatives pay last respects to Dora Bloch, 75, after she was murdered by officers of the Ugandan army.]]
Amin was furious upon learning of the raid, and reportedly boasted that he could have taught the Israelis a lesson if he had known that they would strike.{{sfn|Seftel|2010|p=216}} Following the raid, Maliyamungu had 14 soldiers arrested under suspicion of collaborating with the Israelis. Once they were gathered in a room at Makindye Barracks, he shot 12 of them with his pistol.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newvision.co.ug/new_vision/news/1511955/history-kazini-tried-arrest-kashillingi |title=History: When Kazini tried to arrest Kashillingi |date=11 December 2019 |work=New Vision |access-date=27 February 2020}}</ref> Uganda Army Chief of Staff [[Mustafa Adrisi]] reportedly wanted to incarcerate or execute [[Godwin Sule]], the Entebbe Air Base commander, who was absent from his post during the raid. Sule had left the air base early that day to meet a female companion at Lake Victoria Hotel on 4 July. Despite Adrisi's demands, Sule's closeness to President Amin guaranteed his safety.{{sfn|Rwehururu|2002|p=76}}

==== Murder of Dora Bloch ====
{{Main|Murder of Dora Bloch}}
Dora Bloch, a 74-year-old Israeli who also held British citizenship, was taken to [[Mulago Hospital]] in [[Kampala]] after choking on a chicken bone.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Maltz |first=Judy |date=4 June 2016 |title=40 years after Entebbe, Israeli hostages reflect back on a saga of survival |url=https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2016-06-04/ty-article-magazine/40-years-after-entebbe-israeli-hostages-reflect-back/0000017f-e3a2-d7b2-a77f-e3a7785f0000 |access-date=2024-06-13 |work=Haaretz}}</ref> After the raid she was murdered by officers of the Uganda Army, as were some of her doctors and nurses, apparently for trying to intervene.<ref name="Entebbe's unsung hero." />{{#tag:ref|Now confidential cabinet papers released under the Freedom of Information Act show that the British High Commission in Kampala received a report from a Ugandan civilian that Mrs Bloch had been shot and her body dumped in the boot of a car which had Ugandan intelligence services number plates.<ref name="Idi Amin's hijack victim" />|group="nb"|name="highcommission"}}<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/revealed-the-fate-of-idi-amins-hijack-victim-436181.html |location=London |work=The Independent |first=Robert |last=Verkaik |title=Revealed: the fate of Idi Amin's hijack victim |date=13 February 2007}}</ref> In April 1987, [[Henry Kyemba]], Uganda's [[Attorney general]] and [[Justice ministry|Minister of Justice]] at the time, told the [[Uganda Human Rights Commission]] that Bloch had been dragged from her hospital bed and killed by two army officers on Amin's orders.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/july/7/newsid_2496000/2496095.stm |title=1976: British grandmother missing in Uganda |work=BBC News |access-date=27 December 2012 |archive-date=18 December 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121218065112/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/july/7/newsid_2496000/2496095.stm |url-status=live |date=7 July 1976}}</ref> Bloch was shot and her body was dumped in the trunk of a car that had Ugandan intelligence services number plates. Her remains were recovered near a sugar plantation 20&nbsp;miles (32&nbsp;km) east of Kampala in 1979,<ref name="autogenerated3">{{Cite news |date=4 June 1979 |title=Body of Amin Victim Is Flown Back to Israel |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1979/06/04/archives/body-of-amin-victim-is-flown-back-to-israel.html |access-date= |work=The New York Times |page=A3 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> after the [[Uganda–Tanzania War]] ended Amin's rule.<ref name="Idi Amin's hijack victim">{{Cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/revealed-the-fate-of-idi-amins-hijack-victim-436181.html |title=Revealed: the fate of Idi Amin's hijack victim |last=Verkaik |first=Robert |date=13 February 2007 |work=The Independent |access-date=4 July 2009 |location=London}}</ref>

==== Idi Amin's anti-Kenyan crackdown ====
Amin also ordered the killing of hundreds of Kenyans living in Uganda in retaliation for Kenya's assistance to Israel in the raid. Uganda killed 245 Kenyans, including airport staff at Entebbe. To avoid massacre, approximately 3000 Kenyans fled Uganda as refugees.<ref name="Keesing27891">{{Cite news |date=22 August 1976 |title=Dispute between Uganda and Kenya |url=https://web.stanford.edu/group/tomzgroup/pmwiki/uploads/1368-1976-08-KS-a-IEM.pdf |work=Keesing's Record of World Events |pages=27891 |volume=22}}</ref><ref name="BBCOn">{{Cite news |date=4 July 2008 |title=1976: Israelis rescue Entebbe hostages |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/july/4/newsid_2786000/2786967.stm |access-date=26 July 2009 |work=BBC News |publisher=BBC&nbsp;– On this day}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Kalinaki |first1=Daniel K. |date=3 July 2016 |title=Entebbe raid humiliated Amin, nearly caused East African war |url=https://www.nation.co.ke/news/Entebbe-raid-embarrassed-Amin--nearly-caused-East-African-war/1056-3277804-1327oaiz/index.html |access-date=27 February 2018}}</ref>

On 24 May 1978, Kenya's former agriculture minister, [[Bruce MacKenzie]], was killed when a bomb attached to his aircraft exploded as MacKenzie departed a meeting with Amin. Some have asserted that Ugandan president Idi Amin ordered Ugandan agents to assassinate MacKenzie in retaliation for Kenya's involvement and MacKenzie's actions prior to the raid.<ref name="jpost1" /><ref>{{cite book |author=Kahana |first=Ephraim |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pAar3TpYOt4C&q=israel+kenya&pg=PA171 |title=Historical Dictionary of Israeli Intelligence |publisher=Scarecrow Press |year=2006 |isbn=978-0-8108-6500-6 |access-date=26 September 2013}}</ref><ref name="standardmedia1">{{cite news |url=http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/?articleID=2000042641&pageNo=1 |title=Ugandan agents killed former Cabinet minister, says dossier |publisher=Standard Digital News |access-date=26 September 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KrL9bHLpOq4C&q=bruce+mackenzie+May+24%2C+1978&pg=PA58 |title=Entebbe: The Most Daring Raid of Israel's Special Forces – Simon Dunstan |access-date=26 September 2013 |isbn=978-1-4488-1868-6 |last1=Dunstan |first1=Simon |date=15 January 2011 |publisher=The Rosen Publishing Group}}</ref> Others have indicated various other possible causes for the bombing, including that another person aboard the plane may have been the target.<ref name="mosaad_mckenzie_2019_05_26_thecitizen_co_tz">{{Cite news |date=9 April 2021 |orig-date=2019-05-26 |title=Mossad, McKenzie, Idi Amin: The strange mix |url=https://www.thecitizen.co.tz/tanzania/news/national/-mossad-mckenzie-idi-amin-the-strange-mix-2682606 |access-date=2020-09-25 |work=The Citizen}}[CAUTION: THAT WEB PAGE INFECTED WITH A VIRUS at time of retrieval].</ref><ref name="Kenyan_digest">{{Cite news |date=2 June 2019 |title=Mystery behind Bruce McKenzie's death lingers on |url=https://kenyandigest.com/mystery-behind-bruce-mckenzies-death-lingers-on/ |access-date=2020-09-25 |work=[[Kenyan Digest]]}}{{dead link|date=November 2023|bot=InternetArchiveBot|fix-attempted=yes}}</ref> Later, Mossad Chief Director [[Meir Amit]] had a forest planted in Israel in MacKenzie's name.<ref name="jpost1" />

== Aftermath and reactions ==

=== United Nations ===
The [[United Nations Security Council]] convened on 9 July 1976, to consider a complaint from the Chairman of the Organization of African Unity charging Israel with an "act of aggression".<ref name=SC1939 /> The Council allowed Israel's ambassador to the United Nations, [[Chaim Herzog]], and Uganda's foreign minister, [[Juma Oris]] Abdalla, to participate without voting rights.<ref name=SC1939 /> UN Secretary General [[Kurt Waldheim]] told the Security Council that the raid was "a serious violation of the sovereignty of a Member State of the United Nations" though he was "fully aware that this is not the only element involved ... when the world community is now required to deal with unprecedented problems arising from international terrorism."<ref name=SC1939>Security Council, Official Records, 1939th meeting, 9 July 1976, S/PV.1939.</ref> Abdalla, the representative of Uganda, alleged that the affair was close to a peaceful resolution when Israel intervened while Herzog, the representative of Israel, accused Uganda of direct complicity in the hijacking.<ref name=SC1939 /> The US and UK sponsored a resolution which condemned hijacking and similar acts, deplored the loss of life arising from the hijacking (without condemning either Israel or Uganda), reaffirmed the need to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all states, and called on the international community to enhance the safety of civil aviation.<ref>Security Council. United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and United States of America: draft resolution. Document S/12138, 12 July 1976.</ref> However, the resolution failed to receive the required number of affirmative votes because two voting members abstained and seven were absent.<ref name=SC1943>Security Council, Official Records, 1943th meeting, 14 July 1976, S/PV.1943, p. 18.</ref> A second resolution sponsored by Benin, Libya and Tanzania, that condemned Israel, was not put to a vote.<ref name=SC1943 /><ref>Security Council. Benin, Libyan Arab Republic and United Republic of Tanzania: draft resolution. Document S/12139, 12 July 1976.</ref>

=== Western Bloc ===
Western nations spoke in support of the raid. Switzerland and France publicly praised the operation.{{Citation needed|date=August 2025}}

West Germany praised the raid and used it to advance its push for a multilateral U.N. convention against hostage-taking. Although the United States strongly backed the initiative, its support alienated many developing nations, which feared the convention could give great powers cover to infringe on weaker states' sovereignty. Despite the setback, West Germany persisted in its efforts, later leading the 1979 [[International Convention against the Taking of Hostages]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Blumenau |first=Bernhard |title=The United Nations and Terrorism. Germany, Multilateralism, and Antiterrorism Efforts in the 1970s |year=2014 |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |isbn=978-1-137-39196-4 |chapter=2, The German silence: the Entebbe hijacking of 1976 |pages=59–73}}</ref>

In the United States, the raid’s coincidence with the [[American bicentennial]] sparked the "Entebbe Derby," a dramatic surge in media attention, books, films, and television portrayals. President Gerald Ford publicly congratulated Israel, while members of Congress introduced 12 separate resolutions praising the operation and urging an international conference on terrorism. Under [[Charles Alvin Beckwith|Colonel Charles Beckwith's]] leadership, the Army began laying the groundwork for the [[Delta Force]], though it only received full authorization after the [[GSG 9]] antiterrorist raid on [[Lufthansa Flight 181]] in 1977.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Weiser |first1=Leland |title=Crisis and Counteraction: The Air France Flight 139 and Achille Lauro Hijackings as Catalysts for U.S. Policy Toward Counterterrorism and the Arab–Israeli Conflict |journal=The International History Review |date=2025 |pages=1-15 |doi=10.1080/07075332.2025.2525818 |url=https://doi.org/10.1080/07075332.2025.2525818 |doi-access=free}}</ref> Despite blanket public support for the raid, [[Henry Kissinger]] privately criticized Israeli use of U.S. equipment during the operation during a conversation with Israeli Ambassador [[Simcha Dinitz]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://foia.state.gov/documents/Kissinger/0000BE67.pdf |title=Conversation between Kissinger and Dinitz, 5 July 1976 |access-date=24 July 2011 |archive-date=13 September 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180913110350/https://foia.state.gov/documents/Kissinger/0000BE67.pdf |url-status=dead}}</ref> In mid-July 1976, the supercarrier {{USS|Ranger|CV-61|6}} and her escorts entered the Indian Ocean and operated off the Kenyan coast in response to a threat of military action by forces from Uganda.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://ussranger.org/home/ranger-history |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131203193846/http://ussranger.org/home/ranger-history/ |url-status=dead |title=USS ''Ranger'' Bicentennial Cruise Book |archive-date=3 December 2013}}</ref>

The hijacked aircraft's pilot, Captain [[Michel Bacos]], was awarded the [[Legion of Honour]], and the other crew members were awarded the [[National Order of Merit (France)|French Order of Merit]].<ref name="flight">{{Cite magazine |date=17 July 1976 |title=Entebbe Postscript |url=http://www.flightglobal.com/pdfarchive/view/1976/1976%20-%201254.html |magazine=Flight International |page=122 |via=Flightglobal Archive}}</ref><ref>''Air et cosmos'', Issues 618–634, Impr. Reaumur., 1976, p. 48 (in French)</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.thejc.com/lifestyle/interviews/68894/michel-bacos-air-france-hero-entebbe |title=Michel Bacos: the Air France hero of Entebbe |date=15 June 2012 |work=The Jewish Chronicle |access-date=28 December 2013 |archive-date=4 December 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131204080719/http://www.thejc.com/lifestyle/interviews/68894/michel-bacos-air-france-hero-entebbe |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |date=11 June 2011 |title=Je dois ma vie à Tsahal |trans-title=I owe my life to the IDF |url=http://www.hamodia.fr/article.php?id=2257 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131230234601/http://www.hamodia.fr/article.php?id=2257 |archive-date=30 December 2013 |newspaper=Hamodia |language=fr}}</ref>

In the ensuing years, Betser and the Netanyahu brothers – [[Iddo Netanyahu|Iddo]] and [[Benjamin Netanyahu|Benjamin]], all Sayeret Matkal veterans – argued in increasingly public forums about who was to blame for the unexpected early firefight that caused Yonatan's death and partial loss of tactical surprise.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Roffe-Ofir |first=Sharon |date=2 July 2006 |title=Special: Entebbe's open wound |url=https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3270234,00.html |access-date=2024-06-13 |work=Ynetnews}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Hamerman |first=Josh |date=2 April 2007 |title=Battling against 'the falsification of history' |url=https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3384084,00.html |access-date=2024-06-13 |work=Ynetnews}}</ref>

In a letter dated 13 July 1976, the Supreme Commander's Staff of the [[Military history of Iran#Pahlavi Era (1925 to 1979)|Imperial Iranian Armed Forces]] praised the Israeli commandos for the mission and extended condolences for "the loss and martyrdom" of Netanyahu.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.timesofisrael.com/iran-after-entebbe-called-yoni-netanyahu-a-martyr/ |title=In 1976 letter, Iran hailed Entebbe rescue, mourned death of Yoni Netanyahu |last=Ginsburg |first=Mitch |date=8 July 2015 |location=Jerusalem |access-date=8 May 2016 |work=[[The Times of Israel]]}}</ref>

F-BVGG, the aircraft in the hijacking of Air France Flight 139, was repaired and returned to service with Air France.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ranter |first=Harro |title=ASN Aircraft accident Airbus A300B4-203 F-BVGG Entebbe Airport (EBB) |url=https://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19760627-1 |access-date=19 November 2019 |website=Aviation Safety Network |publisher=[[Flight Safety Foundation]]}}</ref><!-- The ASN states:
"Aircraft damage: unknown
Aircraft fate: repaired"
The damage might have been minor or substantial. --> In April 1996, the aircraft was leased to [[Vietnam Airlines]] for three months. In December the same year, the aircraft was converted into a freighter and was delivered to S–C Aviation, having been re-registered as N742SC. In 1998, the aircraft was delivered to [[MNG Airlines]] and re-registered as TC-MNA. In 2009, the aircraft was placed into storage at Istanbul Atatürk Airport and was scrapped in 2020.{{Citation needed|date=September 2024}}

=== Bombing of Kenya's Norfolk Hotel in Nairobi ===
{{Main|1980 Nairobi hotel bombing}}
[[Fairmont The Norfolk Hotel|The Norfolk Hotel]] in Nairobi, owned by a prominent member of the [[History of the Jews in Kenya|local Jewish community]], was bombed on 31 December 1980. The bomb flattened the hotel, killing 20 people, of several nationalities, and injuring 87 more. It was believed to be an act of revenge by pro-Palestinian militants for Kenya's supporting role in Operation Entebbe.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Kiruga |first1=Morris |date=15 September 2013 |title=20 killed in bomb attack on Norfolk |work=Daily Nation |url=http://mobile.nation.co.ke/lifestyle/-/1950774/1993444/-/format/xhtml/-/91mmanz/-/index.html |url-status=dead |access-date=23 September 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160803155149/http://mobile.nation.co.ke/lifestyle/-/1950774/1993444/-/format/xhtml/-/91mmanz/-/index.html |archive-date=3 August 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |date=21 September 2013 |title=Nairobi assault: Kenyan terrorist attacks since 1980 |work=Telegraph.co.uk |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/kenya/10325230/Nairobi-assault-Kenyan-terrorist-attacks-since-1980.html |url-status=live |url-access=subscription |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220111/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/kenya/10325230/Nairobi-assault-Kenyan-terrorist-attacks-since-1980.html |archive-date=11 January 2022}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Wahome |first=Patrick Mutahi |title=War on terror or war on human rights? Implications of the "war on terror" for human rights in Kenya. |url=http://wiredspace.wits.ac.za/bitstream/handle/10539/1741/final%20report.pdf?sequence=1 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304073609/http://wiredspace.wits.ac.za/bitstream/handle/10539/1741/final%20report.pdf?sequence=1 |archive-date=4 March 2016 |access-date=8 November 2012}}</ref>

== Commemorations ==
In August 2012, Uganda and Israel commemorated the raid at a somber ceremony at the base of the tower at the old terminal, where [[Yonatan Netanyahu]] was killed. Uganda and Israel renewed their commitment to "fight terrorism and to work towards humanity".<ref name="Uganda Israel 2012">{{cite news |url=http://www.newvision.co.ug/news/634093-Uganda--Israel-honor-1976-Entebbe-raid.html |title=Uganda, Israel honor 1976 Entebbe raid |newspaper=New Vision |date=14 August 2012 |access-date=14 August 2012 |author=Candia, Steven |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120815235504/http://www.newvision.co.ug/news/634093-Uganda--Israel-honor-1976-Entebbe-raid.html |archive-date=15 August 2012}}</ref> In addition, wreaths were laid, a moment of silence was held, speeches were given, and a poem was recited. The flags of Uganda and Israel were flown side by side, symbolising the two countries' strong bilateral relations, next to a plaque bearing a history of the raid. The ceremony was attended by Ugandan State Minister for Animal Industry [[Bright Rwamirama]] and the deputy [[Foreign Affairs Minister of Israel]] [[Daniel Ayalon]], who laid wreaths at the site.<ref name="Uganda Israel 2012" />

In 2016, forty years to the day after the rescue operation, Israeli prime minister [[Benjamin Netanyahu]], brother of slain Israeli commando Yonatan Netanyahu, visited Entebbe with an Israeli delegation, and laid the groundwork for further Israeli–sub-Saharan African bilateral relations.<ref>{{cite news |author=Macintyre |first=Donald |date=4 July 2016 |title=Binyamin Netanyahu visits scene of brother's 1976 Entebbe airport death |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jul/04/binyamin-netanyahu-israel-entebbe-airport-uganda |work=[[The Guardian]]}}</ref> In the U.S., the commemoration of the 40th anniversary of the operation was held at Temple Mikvah Israel, in Philadelphia, PA where a memorial to Yonatan Netanayahu who was killed in the operation was built in 1982.<ref>{{cite web |title=Yoni Netanyahu's childhood friends plan Entebbe event in Philadelphia |website=The Jerusalem Post |date=2016-07-04 |url=https://www.jpost.com/international/yoni-netanyahus-childhood-friends-plan-entebbe-event-in-philadelphia-459463 |access-date=2025-08-27}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Balcher |first=Lou |title=Commemorating Israel’s Fight for Freedom |website=The Times of Israel |date=2016-07-28 |url=https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/the-other-philadelphia-story-commemorating-israels-fight-for-freedom-2/ |access-date=2025-08-27}}</ref>

== In popular culture ==

=== Documentaries ===
* ''Operation Thunderbolt: Entebbe'', a documentary about the hijacking and the subsequent rescue mission.<ref>{{cite news |last=McFadden |first=Robert D. |author-link=Robert D. McFadden |date=26 July 1976 |title=6 Film Studios Vie Over Entebbe Raid |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1976/07/26/archives/6-film-studios-vie-over-entebbe-raid.html |newspaper=The New York Times |access-date=27 April 2018}}</ref>
* ''[[Rise and Fall of Idi Amin]]'' (1980), a biographical film of the Ugandan dictator briefly features the raid, with an unusual depiction of Amin displaying cowardice when he learns of it.<ref>{{cite book |author=Rich |first=Paul B. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jn1jDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA196 |title=Cinema and Unconventional Warfare in the Twentieth Century: Insurgency, Terrorism and Special Operations |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing |year=2018 |isbn=978-1-350-05570-4 |page=196}}</ref>
* Rescue at Entebbe, Episode 12 of 2005 documentary series ''Against All Odds: Israel Survives'' by Michael Greenspan.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-All-Odds-Israel-Survives/dp/B06W2LP42C |work=[[Amazon Prime Video]] | title=Against All Odds: Israel Survives}}</ref>
* ''[[Cohen on the Bridge]]'' (2010), a documentary by director Andrew Wainrib, who gained access to the surviving commandos and hostages.<ref>{{cite web |title=2012 Film Selections |url=https://lajfilmfest.org/2012-selections/ |work=Los Angeles Jewish Film Festival}}</ref>
* ''Live or Die in Entebbe'' (2012) by director [[Eyal Boers]] follows Yonatan Khayat's journey to uncover the circumstances of his uncle Jean-Jacques Maimoni's death in the raid.<ref>{{cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=csab-m6QuZk |title=Operation Entebbe – 'Live or Die in Entebbe' Trailer |publisher=YouTube |date=3 December 2012 |access-date=9 January 2013}}</ref>
* "Assault on Entebbe", an episode of the [[National Geographic Channel]] documentary ''[[Critical Situation]]''.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.natgeotv.com/za/shows/natgeo/situation-critical |work=National Geographic TV |title=Situation Critical}}</ref>
* ''Operation Thunderbolt'', the fifth episode in the 2012 [[Military Channel]] documentary series ''Black Ops''.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.amazon.com/Operation-Thunderbolt/dp/B00A6LH9GQ |title=Amazon.com: Black OPS Season 1: Amazon Digital Services LLC |website=Amazon}}</ref>

=== Dramatizations ===
* ''[[Victory at Entebbe]]'' (1976): with [[Anthony Hopkins]], [[Burt Lancaster]], [[Elizabeth Taylor]] and [[Richard Dreyfuss]], Director: [[Marvin J. Chomsky]].<ref name="TimesOfIsrael">{{cite news |author=Hoffman |first=Jordan |date=2 March 2018 |title=New 'Entebbe' hijacked by heavy-handed political correctness |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/new-entebbe-hijacked-by-heavy-handed-political-correctness/ |work=[[Times of Israel]]}}</ref>
* ''[[Raid on Entebbe (film)|Raid on Entebbe]]'' (1977): with [[Peter Finch]], [[Horst Buchholz]], [[Charles Bronson]], [[John Saxon]], [[Yaphet Kotto]], and [[James Woods]], Director: [[Irvin Kershner]], Producer: [[Edgar J. Scherick]].<ref name="TimesOfIsrael" />
* ''[[Operation Thunderbolt (film)|Operation Thunderbolt]]'' (1977): with [[Yehoram Gaon]] played Col. Netanyahu, [[Sybil Danning]] and [[Klaus Kinski]] played the hijackers. Director: [[Menahem Golan]].<ref name="TimesOfIsrael" />
* ''[[The Last King of Scotland (film)|The Last King of Scotland]]'' (2006): The raid occurs as one episode in a longer story about Idi Amin.<ref name="TimesOfIsrael" />
* ''[[Entebbe (film)|Entebbe]]'' (2018): Director: [[José Padilha]].<ref name="TimesOfIsrael" />

=== Films inspired by Operation Entebbe ===
* ''[[The Delta Force]]'' (1986) which featured a hostage rescue operation inspired by Operation Entebbe.<ref>{{cite news |last=Romirowsky |first=Asaf |author-link=Asaf Romirowsky |date=6 July 2011 |url=https://www.nationalreview.com/corner/entebbe-raid-35-years-later-asaf-romirowsky/ |title=The Entebbe Raid, 35 Years Later |newspaper=[[National Review]] | access-date=27 December 2012 |archive-date=18 February 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130218103044/http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/271208/entebbe-raid-35-years-later-asaf-romirowsky |url-status=live}}</ref>
* ''[[Zameen (2003 film)|Zameen]]'' (2003) is a [[Bollywood]] movie starring [[Ajay Devgan]] and [[Abhishek Bachchan]] who draw a plan to rescue hostages of an Indian airliner hijacked by Pakistani militants on the basis of Operation Entebbe.<ref>{{cite book |author=Chaudhuri |first=Diptakirti |title=Bollybook: The Big Book of Hindi Movie Trivia |publisher=Penguin UK |year=2014 |isbn=978-93-5118-799-8 |chapter=Taking Flight: 10 Aircraft and Photos |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gq-CBAAAQBAJ&pg=PT261}}</ref>

=== Other media ===
* ''[[Operation Thunderbolt (video game)|Operation Thunderbolt]],'' a 1988 [[arcade game]], loosely based on Operation Entebbe, but using a fictional location.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.giantbomb.com/operation-thunderbolt/3030-14088/ |work=Giant Bomb |title=Operation Thunderbolt (Game)}}</ref>
* ''[[To Pay the Price]]'', a 2009 play by [[Peter-Adrian Cohen]] based in part on Yonatan Netanyahu's letters.<ref name="theatreor.com">{{cite web |url=http://www.theatreor.com/ |title=theatreor.com presents A WORLD PREMIERE from an Israeli Perspective |last=Cohen |first=Peter-Adrian |author-link=Peter-Adrian Cohen |access-date=5 July 2009}}</ref> The play, produced by [[North Carolina]]'s Theatre Or opened off-off Broadway in New York in June 2009 during the [[Association for Jewish Theatre|Festival of Jewish Theater and Ideas]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://broadwayworld.com/article/Untitled_Theater_Co_61s_Fest_Of_Jewish_Theater_Ideas_Runs_520614_In_NYC_20090520 |title=Untitled Theater Co #61's Fest of Jewish Theater & Ideas Runs |date=20 May 2009 |access-date=5 July 2009}}</ref>

== Gallery ==
<gallery>
File:Entebbe-international-airport-2009-002.jpg|The old control tower as seen from the front
File:Entebbe-international-airport-2009-003.jpg|Close up of the control tower
File:Entebbe-international-airport-2009-001.jpg|The old terminal building as it appeared in 2009
File:Entebbe-international-airport-2009-004.jpg|Wall plaque on display at the old terminal building
File:Entebbe-international-airport-2009-005.jpg|The old terminal building of the Entebbe International Airport as seen from the air
</gallery>

== See also ==
{{Portal|Uganda|France|Israel|Aviation}}
* [[Air France Flight 8969]] – a similar hijacking and raid on another Air France airliner in 1994
* [[Aspen Movie Map]] – a project whose funding came about because of Operation Entebbe
* [[Israeli casualties of war]]
* [[List of hostage crises]]
* [[Lufthansa Flight 181]] – a similar event the following year, involving a German airliner
* [[Military Intelligence Directorate (Israel)]] (Aman) – Israel's military intelligence agency
* [[Operation Gift]]
* [[Operation Opera]]
* [[Operation Outside the Box]]
* [[Operation Wooden Leg]]
* [[Operation Mikado]] – a proposed SAS operation during the [[Falklands War]] inspired by Operation Entebbe
* [[Operation Niki]] – a clandestine airlift of a battalion of Greek commandos from Crete to Cyprus in 1974
* [[Sayeret]] – Israeli Special Forces Units

== Notes ==
{{Reflist|group=nb}}

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== Further reading ==
{{refbegin|30em}}
* {{Cite book |last=Avner |first=Yehuda |author-link=Yehuda Avner |title=The Prime Ministers: An Intimate Narrative of Israeli Leadership |year=2010 |publisher=The Toby Press |isbn=978-1-59264-278-6 |chapter=26, ''Entebbe: Flight 139'' |pages=303–318}}
* {{Cite book |last=Blumenau |first=Bernhard |title=The United Nations and Terrorism. Germany, Multilateralism, and Antiterrorism Efforts in the 1970s |year=2014 |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |isbn=978-1-137-39196-4 |chapter=2, '''The German silence’: the Entebbe hijacking of 1976'' |pages=59–73}}
* {{Cite book |last=Betser |first=Muki |author2=Robert Rosenberg |title=Secret Soldier |year=1996 |publisher=Simon & Schuster |location=Sydney |isbn=978-0-671-85233-7}}
* {{Cite book |last=David |first=Saul |author-link=Saul David |title=Operation Thunderbolt: Flight 139 and the Raid on Entebbe Airport |year=2015 |publisher=[[Hodder & Stoughton]] | location=London |isbn=978-1-4447-6251-8}}
* {{Cite book |last=Dunstan |first=Simon |title=Israel's Lighting Strike, The raid on Entebbe 1976 |year=2009 |publisher=[[Osprey Publishing]]; Osprey Raid Series No. 2 |isbn=978-1-84603-397-1}}
* {{Cite book |last=Hastings |first=Max |author-link=Max Hastings |title=Yoni: Hero of Entebbe |publisher=Doubleday |isbn=978-0-385-27127-1 |year=1979}}
* {{Cite book |last=Netanyahu |first=Iddo |author-link=Iddo Netanyahu |title=Yoni's Last Battle: The Rescue at Entebbe, 1976 |year=2001 |publisher=Gefen Books |isbn=978-965-229-283-4}}
* {{Cite book |author1=Netanyahu, Ido |author2=Netanyahu, ʻIdo |author3=Netanyahu, Iddo |author4=Hazony, Yoram |title=Entebbe: the Jonathan Netanyahu story: a defining moment in the war on terrorism |year=2003 |publisher=Balfour Books |location=Green Forest, AR |isbn=978-0-89221-553-9 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/entebbejonathann0000neta}}
* {{Cite book |author1=Netanyahu, Jonathan |author2=Netanyahu, Binyamin |author3=Netanyahu, Ido |author4=Wouk, Herman |title=Self-Portrait of a Hero: From the Letters of Jonathan Netanyahu, 1963–1976 |publisher=Warner Books Inc |isbn=978-0-446-67461-4 |year=1998}}
* {{Cite book |last=Netanyahu |first=Jonathan |author-link=Jonathan Netanyahu |title=The Letters of Jonathan Netanyahu: The Commander of the Entebbe Rescue Operation |publisher=Gefen Publishing House, Ltd |isbn=978-965-229-267-4 |year=2001}}
* {{Cite book |editor-last=Seftel |editor-first=Adam |title=Uganda: The Bloodstained Pearl of Africa and Its Struggle for Peace. From the Pages of Drum |publisher=Fountain Publishers |date=2010 |orig-year=1st pub. 1994 |location=Kampala |isbn=978-9970-02-036-2}}
* {{Cite book |last=Stevenson |first=William |author-link=William Stevenson (Canadian writer) |title=90 Minutes at Entebbe |year=1976 |publisher=Bantam Books |location=New York |isbn=978-0-553-10482-0 |url=https://archive.org/details/90minutesatenteb00stev}}
* {{cite book |last=Rwehururu |first=Bernard |title=Cross to the Gun |publisher=Monitor |date=2002 |location=Kampala |oclc=50243051}}
{{refend}}

== External links ==
{{Commons category|Entebbe Raid}}
{{Spoken Wikipedia|En-OperationEntebbe-article.ogg|date=20 December 2017}}
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=csab-m6QuZk Live or Die in Entebbe] Trailer
* {{YouTube|p4Bou72k2fY|Operation Thunderbolt}}, video by National Geographic, 4 min.
* {{YouTube|Z1ct-meb6U0|Raid on Entebbe}} video and digitised re-enactment, 9 min.
* {{YouTube|ffRQ6e29Dw0|Operation Thunderbolt – part 1}} video documentary – detailed, 9 min. {{YouTube|DJU1VsgI_-I|part 2}} 10 min.
* {{YouTube|lemwyO054OI|The Greatest Hostage Rescue in History: Documentary on The Entebbe Raid.}} documentary – detailed, 44 min.
* [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/israel/11701064/Israels-raid-on-Entebbe-was-almost-a-disaster.html Israel's raid on Entebbe was almost a disaster], Daily Telegraph article by Saul David
* [http://www.strategyandtacticspress.com/library-files/ST232-Web.pdf Entebbe: Turning Point of Terrorism] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304101540/http://www.strategyandtacticspress.com/library-files/ST232-Web.pdf |date=4 March 2016 }} in Strategy and Tactics, No. 232, January/February 2006.
* [https://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/july/4/newsid_2786000/2786967.stm BBC Article and Videos – 4 July 1976: Israelis rescue Entebbe hostages (BBC)]
* [https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/5101412.stm BBC: 30th anniversary of the raid on Entebbe]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20080430151350/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/age_of_terror/7303356.stm BBC Age of Terror – Episode 1: Terror International]
* [http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3980051,00.html Operation Entebbe protocols] [[Ynetnews]] 5 November 2010. transcripts of Israeli Cabinet discussions

{{Aviation accidents and incidents in 1976}}
{{Terrorist attacks against Israelis in the 1970s}}
{{Palestinian militancy attacks in the 1970s}}
{{Air France}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Operation Entebbe| ]]
[[Category:1976 disasters in Uganda]]
[[Category:1976 in Israel]]
[[Category:Mossad operations]]
[[Category:Operations involving Israeli special forces]]
[[Category:Hostage rescue operations involving Israel]]
[[Category:Counterterrorism in Israel]]
[[Category:Airborne operations]]
[[Category:Attacks on airports in Africa]]
[[Category:Military operations involving airports]]
[[Category:Idi Amin]]
[[Category:Israel–Uganda relations]]
[[Category:Air France accidents and incidents]]
[[Category:Aircraft hijackings]]
[[Category:Attacks on aircraft by Palestinian militant groups]]
[[Category:Aviation accidents and incidents in 1976]]
[[Category:Aviation accidents and incidents in Uganda]]
[[Category:Terrorist incidents in Africa in 1976]]
[[Category:Terrorist incidents in Uganda in the 1970s]]
[[Category:Hijackings in the 1970s]]
[[Category:Palestinian terrorist incidents in Greece]]
[[Category:Raids of the Arab–Israeli conflict]]
[[Category:July 1976 in Africa]]
[[Category:Revolutionary Cells (German group)]]