PM eulogizes officer killed in hostage rescue: ‘Forever remembered in the history of our people’

Lazar Berman is The Times of Israel's diplomatic reporter

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks at the start of the weekly cabinet meeting, June 9, 2024 (Screen grab)
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks at the start of the weekly cabinet meeting, June 9, 2024 (Screen grab)

At the outset of the weekly cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks at length about the operation to rescue the four hostages yesterday.

“The massive achievement yesterday raised the caused the nation to stand up taller,” says Netanyahu, “and I must say, it caused Israel’s supporters around the world to stand taller as well.”

“But it came with great pain, the fall of the hero of Israel, the IDF warrior, the late commander Arnon Zmora,” he continues.

He relates a story told by Amir Ofer, a commando who freed hostages from Entebbe Airport in 1976 under the command of Netanyahu’s brother Yoni, about meeting Zmora. After October 7, Zmora called Ofer to recount the battles he took part in against Hamas terrorists in Israeli towns and on roads near the border. “How did you succeed and we didn’t?” Zmora asked Ofer.

“It took me a few hours to digest your story. You were really heroes and you performed in an extraordinary way under the most difficult conditions,” Ofer wrote to Zmora.

“Arnon will forever be remembered in the history of our people,” says Netanyahu. “Just like the Rabin government supported the proposal to call the operation to free the hostage in Entebbe ‘Operation Yonatan’ after the commander of the assault force who fell in battle, I am sure that our government also unanimously supports the proposal to name the operation to free the hostages in Gaza ‘Operation Arnon’ after the commander of the force who fell in battle — the hero of Israel Arnon Zmora.”

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