CDF General Muhoozi Kainerugaba Announces Plan for Statue of Yoni Netanyahu at Entebbe Airport
KAMPALA, Uganda — Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba, a senior commander in the Uganda People’s Defence Forces and son of President Yoweri Museveni, announced early Thursday that Uganda will erect a statue honoring Lt. Col. Yonatan “Yoni” Netanyahu at the precise location where he was killed during the 1976 Entebbe hostage rescue.
“In order to strengthen our close blood relations with Israel, we shall soon unveil a statue to Yoni Netanyahu at the exact spot he was killed at Entebbe Airport,” Kainerugaba posted on social media platform X. “Yoni was the big brother of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. God bless Uganda and Israel.”
The announcement marks a significant symbolic gesture between Uganda and Israel, honoring the Israeli commander who led Operation Thunderbolt (later renamed Operation Yonatan in his memory) — the mission to rescue hostages taken by Palestinian and German hijackers who had diverted Air France Flight 139 to Entebbe.
Historical Context
The Entebbe raid, conducted on July 4, 1976, remains one of the most daring hostage rescue operations in modern military history. Israeli commandos flew more than 2,000 miles to Uganda to free approximately 100 hostages who had been held at the old Entebbe Airport terminal after the hijacking.
The operation came at the invitation of then-Ugandan dictator Idi Amin, who had allowed the hijackers to operate from Ugandan soil. During the assault, Yoni Netanyahu, commander of the elite Sayeret Matkal unit, was killed — the only Israeli military fatality of the operation.
His younger brother, Benjamin Netanyahu, later entered politics and has served multiple terms as Israel’s prime minister.
Official Response
The announcement received immediate support from Ugandan officials, including Barugahara Balaam Atwooki, a minister, who called it a “great move.”
“His leadership during the historic operation at Entebbe International Airport will never be forgotten,” Balaam responded. “May this memorial stand as a testament to shared history, mutual respect, and strengthened ties between our nations.”
The post has garnered significant attention, accumulating over 118,000 views along with thousands of likes and reposts.
Diplomatic Implications
The proposed memorial represents a remarkable evolution in Uganda-Israel relations, which were severed under Amin’s rule but fully restored in 1994. In recent years, ties have deepened substantially, with Israeli firms involved in Ugandan infrastructure projects and security cooperation.
Neither the Ugandan presidency nor the Israeli embassy in Kampala has issued official statements regarding the proposed monument or its timeline for construction.
The announcement comes amid Kainerugaba’s increasingly prominent role in Ugandan politics and regional diplomacy, with many observers viewing him as a potential successor to his father, who has ruled Uganda since 1986.
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