Benjamin Netanyahu and the Fourth of July

July 4th is a special day for our Israeli friend and ally Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Thirty years ago, July 4, 1976, he lost his brother in the famed emergency rescue of hijacked airline passengers in Entebbe, Uganda.

Edi Amin held wretched dictatorial sway in Uganda and sought to further terrorize the world by taking Jewish and other passengers off an Air France flight at the Entebbe airport. In a courageous and dangerous move, Israeli commandos swooped in by air, rescued almost all the captives and flew them to safety, deeply embarrassing Amin and his military. There was one single Israeli casualty—Yoni Netanyahu.

On Sunday, June 28, a special memorial was held at Mt. Hertzl in Jerusalem. Netanyahu spoke in remembrance of the rescue and especially of his brother.

Netanyahu appreciates both his brother’s sacrifice and America. The Prime Minister was educated in the United States, accounting for his flawless English. He spent his high school years here when his father was a history teacher in the States. Later, he received degrees from MIT and studied at Harvard. He stirred the world’s anti-terror conscience through the Jonathan Institute, which is named after his slain brother, whose nickname was Yoni.

Netanyahu previously served a term as Prime Minister. In the most recent election, he was again appointed to form the latest Israeli government and is the focus of incredible pressures from all political sides regarding the Palestinian issue and possible attack from Iran.

His appreciation for America is excelled only by his devotion to Israel. On July 1, he attended a Fourth of July Appreciation Day gathering at the home of U.S. Ambassador James Cunningham where he spoke of Israel’s great appreciation for "a close relationship with the U.S." Responding, Cunningham noted the strong US-Israeli bond and said, "The United States is committed to Israel’s security."

In a long ago freedom celebration, Israel left Egypt after sprinkling the shed blood of the lamb on the door posts and lintels and eating the slain lamb whose body was roasted over a fire on a spit. According to some scholars, the spit was a stick lengthwise and crosswise through the shoulders—a lamb on a cross. Paul said, "Christ was our Passover sacrificed for us," in I Corinthians 5:7.

Israel’s liberation and American freedom must always have a stated kinship. Mr. Netanyahu surely understands the sacrifice of his own brother to rescue the innocent passengers in Entebbe on that July 4th, and he must certainly know of Numbers 12 and the slain lamb of his Old Testament.

America’s stability and blessing is inevitably linked to recognition and support of God’s ethnic Israeli remnant as Genesis 12:3 declares. The term "Judeo-Christian ethic" is more than a well-worn phrase. It is an expression of a vital link between Israel and America and between freedom there and freedom here.

Dave Virkler