Fifty years after Israel’s daring Entebbe hostage rescue and nearly a quarter-century after Jerusalem’s Atarot Airport closed, Israel on Sunday laid the cornerstone for the Atarot Heritage Center, a museum that will preserve the history of the former airport, the pioneering Atarot moshav and “Operation Yonatan.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife, Sara, joined Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu, Jerusalem Mayor Moshe Lion and other ministers, lawmakers and public figures at the ceremony at the airport’s historic terminal building in northern Jerusalem.
“In Atarot, we are restoring former glory,” Netanyahu said. “‘Operation Yonatan’ elevated Israel’s standing among the nations as a small country with colossal audacity. Its story will be immortalized in the heritage center we will establish here.”
The center is being established as part of events marking the 50th anniversary of the July 4, 1976 rescue of more than 100 hostages from Entebbe, Uganda, in an operation that claimed the life of Lt. Col. Yonatan “Yoni” Netanyahu, commander of the elite Sayeret Matkal (General Staff Reconnaissance) unit and the prime minister’s older brother.
Preserving a century of history
The heritage center will also tell the story of Atarot, one of the first modern Jewish agricultural communities north of Jerusalem. Founded in 1919, the moshav was destroyed during Israel’s War of Independence after its residents were forced to evacuate in 1948.
Adjacent to the moshav stood Atarot Airport, originally established during the British Mandate more than a century ago. The airport served Jerusalem for decades before permanently closing at the start of the Second Intifada in 2000.
Netanyahu recalled flying through the airport before its closure and said the site represented both Jerusalem’s past and its future.
“The final word regarding the development of Atarot has not yet been spoken,” he said, pledging continued development of northern Jerusalem. “Together, we will restore former glory to Atarot.”
From Entebbe to today
Reflecting on the Entebbe operation, Netanyahu said its success rested on bold leadership, meticulous planning and Israel’s willingness to act far from its borders.
“‘Operation Yonatan’ elevated Israel’s standing among the nations as a small country with colossal audacity,” he said. “The story of the operation, on the ground and high in the skies, will be immortalized in the heritage center we will establish here.”
He also linked the legacy of Entebbe to Israel’s current military campaign.
“Just as the heroism of our fighters in the War of Redemption draws from the heroism of our fighters in Entebbe, so the heroism of Entebbe drew from the heroism of previous generations,” he said.
Looking to Jerusalem’s future
Among those who played a leading role in advancing the transformation of the historic terminal into a museum was Chaim Silberstein, founder and chairman of the Jerusalem Center for Applied Policy (JCAP), who has also promoted development of the surrounding Atarot area.
“The ceremony is over—now it’s time to get back to work,” Silberstein told JNS. “What happens on the ground will determine whether we can pass on the heritage of Atarot to future generations alongside a magnificent new 5,000-unit neighborhood on the northern border of Israel’s capital.”
Silberstein said he also spoke with Netanyahu during the ceremony and recalled a conversation years earlier with the prime minister’s late father, historian Professor Benzion Netanyahu.
“Prof. Benzion Netanyahu urged me to continue working to unite and build Jerusalem,” Silberstein said.
“The love for Jerusalem and the commitment to its future are passed down from generation to generation. It is clear that Benzion Netanyahu instilled in his sons a deep connection to Israel’s capital. I am pleased to see that Prime Minister Netanyahu continues his father’s path.”
Palestinian Authority objects
The Palestinian Authority’s Jerusalem governor condemned the project, claiming it was intended to strengthen Israeli sovereignty in northern Jerusalem, reshape the area’s historical narrative and advance plans for the future Atarot neighborhood.
The P.A. called for international intervention, arguing that the project undermines the possibility of establishing a Palestinian state with eastern Jerusalem as its capital.
Israeli officials, however, presented the heritage center as both a preservation project and a cornerstone of Jerusalem’s continuing development, commemorating the city’s pioneering past while looking toward its future.
