A Trip Down the Memory Lane

When I was about seven or eight years old, my dad brought this package late at night. I was supposed to be in bed by 8 pm, but he told me I could stay up. He made sure I never talk about what he was about to show me and never tell anybody about it. Then he pressed the Play bottom on the VHS and the movie started. It was Operation Thunderbolt Movie. For those who do not know about it, back in 1976 Palestinian Terrorists high jacked an Air France plane on its rout to Israel and kidnapped its Israeli Passengers. Israeli Commando from Sayeret Unit of Matkhal conducted a daring rescue operation all the way in the heart of Africa in Uganda. They rescued all the hostages with exception of three who died in the gun battle that erupted, killed all the terrorists, destroyed half of Uganda’s Air force, and they safely returned to Israel. It was an operation that shocked the world. The movie has a lot of great points and scene regarding U.N.’s role in the situation that stood by mutely when Jewish Hostages were taken and how the world totally ignored the problem. It was the Israeli Commandos who walked up to the plate and got the job done. In this mission, Yoni Netanyahu was the only IDF casualty. He was also the designer and commander of this magnificent rescue mission. There is so much to write about that mission, but I just don’t have the time to do it at this point.
This movie had a huge effect on me. There was something about this movie that made me really proud to be a Jew in a country that I had to chant “death to Israel” every day. There were two scenes that I never forgot and stuck by me, they were the first scene when soldiers were in the plane singing Hine Matov song before they reach their destination. The second scene is when the plane has landed and the hostages are let out of the plane. The song brought me to tears at that age and I always remember the feeling I had at such young age. Amazingly I found the two scenes on YouTube and I have decided to share them with you guys. Enjoy: