Entebbe (Balfour Books, LLC)

During the first hot days of July, 1976, the world watched a tense hostage situation unfold in Uganda. Palestinian and German terrorists had hijacked an Air France jet in Athens, then surprised everyone by flying to sanctuary in Idi Amin’s African dictatorship. The airport at Entebbe provided the perfect haven for the hijackers, and a hellish wait for the 105 captives, who were threatened with execution if certain demands were not met. Israel’s government declared its intentions to negotiate the release of terrorists from its jails; the bold capture of the jet created a tense standoff. It wasn’t nearly as dramatic as what happened next. At midnight on July 4, Hercules transport planes loaded with Israeli commandos landed at Entebbe Airport. Traveling 2,500 miles in eight hours had given them the element of surprise. Within minutes, the most dramatic hostage rescue of all time was part of history. The resolve, daring, and skill of Israel’s finest preserved a hundred souls. This is the story of the rescue at Entebbe, and the planning of the operation by the commander of the rescue force, Jonathan Netanyahu. Interviews with the members of the force, and the author’s gripping narrative, make this extraordinary story impossible to lay aside. View Less