Israel's state archives have released a comprehensive collection of historical documents on the 50th anniversary of the Entebbe hijacking, giving the public detailed insight into how the Israeli government acted during the crisis.
The authority published all files related to Operation Entebbe, including previously classified documents, transcripts of telephone conversations and photographs.
According to the archives, the release of tens of thousands of pages of material offers a more complete and precise account of the events between the hostage-taking and the military rescue operation on July 4, 1976.
On June 27, 1976, Palestinian and German terrorists hijacked an Air France plane on its way from Athens to Paris. They demanded the release of prisoners in Israel, France, Germany and Switzerland, including members of the Red Army Faction (RAF), a now disbanded left-wing German terrorist group.
The Palestinian hijackers belonged to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine - External Operations (PFLP-EO), led by Wadie Haddad, while the German participants were members of the Revolutionary Cells (RZ), a far-left militant group active in Germany from the 1970s to the 1990s.
After a stopover in Libya, the hijackers flew to Entebbe in Uganda. The terrorists released most non-Jewish passengers and held more than 100 Jewish and Israeli hostages. The French flight crew chose to remain with the captives.
The newly released documents include accounts of the moment then-prime minister Yitzhak Rabin informed his Cabinet that contact had been lost with the Air France flight following a stop in Athens and that it appeared to have been hijacked. At that stage, Israeli officials still did not know who was behind the operation or what their intentions were.
An Israeli military unit ended the hostage crisis in a daring raid in the early hours of July 4, 1976. All seven hijackers were killed, along with three hostages, several Ugandan soldiers and Israeli commander Yonatan Netanyahu, the brother of current Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
According to the state archives, the files document the Israeli government's deliberations, strategic concerns and the various scenarios considered during the crisis, as well as the complex decision-making process that preceded the military operation. They also detail the support provided to the hijackers by Uganda's then-president, Idi Amin.
Following the operation, Rabin described the mission as "one of the most exemplary victories from both the human and moral, and the military-operational points of view."
