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| By israelinsider staff June 2, 2007 |
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Effie Eitam, Knesset member and National Union leader, Brigadier General and a participant in the 1976 raid on Entebbe in Uganda to free Jewish hostages after the hijacking of an Air France jet, blasted the "gall" of the British government report just declassified after 31 years as an "insulting attempt to delegitimize Israel."
Eitam considered the story to be another effort to besmirch Israel's name. "News reports that often come out of European media have long held a bias against Israel, positioning it a pariah. This latest 'news report' is a continuation of the anti-Israel bias created to mire Israel in darkness."
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Ours is not the tradition that readily sacrifices people or spills its own blood for PR value.
MK Effie Eitam
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After the rescue of the hostages, the UK never expressed supported, Eitam noted. "The 30 year old declassified report is unfortunate. We now see the reasons why Britain never expressed support for the Entebbe raid. It is even more unfortunate that this news story will be used against Israel by its detractors."
As a participant in the rescue, Eitam was outraged at the idea that Israel could in any way stage the hijacking. "I was there in Entebbe; I saw the fear and then gratitude in the eyes of the freed hostages. I cried, saw the tears and sang the prayers for Yoni Netanyahu when he was cut down by the terrorists, and I am furious at any insinuation that Israelis orchestrated this. The facts need no justification. How dare anyone accuse us of creating this horrific kidnapping scene as a public relations stunt? Ours is not a tradition that readily sacrifices people or spills its own blood for PR value."
Eitam tied it to more recent calumnies. "The lies in this report end here and now. It is about as audacious as the accusation that Israel was responsible for 9/11."
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