Uganda has unveiled a statue of Yonatan Netanyahu, the older brother of Israel’s prime minister, who was killed during the Entebbe hostage rescue mission half a century ago.
The monument, described by Ugandan army chief Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba as an honour to his courage and self‑less service, marks the historic location where the 1976 raid took place.
Netanyahu was the only Israeli soldier killed in the operation that rescued over 100 hostages after an Air France flight was hijacked and diverted to Uganda by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine. The Israeli mission confronted the Ugandan army, resulting in the deaths of 45 Ugandan soldiers, the hijackers, and three accomplices.
Standing in bronze outside the old airport terminal, the statue holds a machine gun, a symbol of the raid’s intensity. The artists captured Netanyahu’s determined stride, a visual echo of the bravery celebrated in Israel and remembered in Uganda.
Kainerugaba called the rescue “one of the most significant episodes in modern history” and highlighted the evolving partnership between the two countries, now defined by mutual trust and cooperation. He recalled the older men’s deaths while urging future generations to pursue peace, justice and human dignity.
At the moment of unveiling, the leaders of both nations spoke of shared history and the enduring importance of remembrance. The statue’s presence at Entebbe serves as a stark reminder of the complex intersection of tragedy and triumph that shaped the region’s past.
