Israeli Sayeret matkal - Special Forces

Israeli Sayeret Matkal - Operation Entebbe, 1976

"3,000 miles from home. One runway. 100 hostages. They landed in the dark and had 90 seconds."

STORY: July 4, 1976. Palestinian terrorists hijacked an Air France flight and diverted it to Entebbe, Uganda, where dictator Idi Amin supported them.

106 Jewish hostages faced execution in 48 hours.

Israel planned the impossible: a 2,500-mile rescue raid into hostile territory.

Four C-130 Hercules aircraft flew at wave-top height across the Red Sea, refueling mid-air, evading radar.

They landed at midnight with lights off. From the lead plane rolled a black Mercedes identical to Idi Amin's. Ugandan guards saluted, thinking their president was arriving.

Sayeret Matkal operators emerged and eliminated the sentries silently. They stormed the terminal in 90 seconds, killing all seven terrorists.

One officer, Yoni Netanyahu, was killed leading the assault. In 53 minutes, they evacuated 102 hostages, destroyed Ugandan fighters on the ground, and flew home. The world called it impossible. Israel called it a success.