Editing Yonatan Netanyahu

{{Short description|Israeli military officer (1946–1976)}}
{{pp-semi|small=yes}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2024}}
{{Infobox military person
| name          = Yonatan Netanyahu
| native_name   = יוֹנָתָן נְתַנְיָהוּ
| native_name_lang = he
| birth_date    = March 13, 1946
| death_date    = {{death date and age|1976|7|4|1946|3|13}}
| birth_place   = New York City, US
| death_place   = [[Entebbe]], Uganda
| image         = Yonatan Netanyahu ca 1974.jpg
| alt           = Headshot of Yonatan Netanyahu 
| caption       = Last known photo of Netanyahu, taken shortly before his death in [[Entebbe raid|Operation Entebbe]]<ref>[http://followmethemovie.com/gallery/ ''Follow Me'' image gallery] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130203020345/http://followmethemovie.com/gallery/ |date=February 3, 2013 }}</ref>
| nickname      = Yoni ({{lang|he|יוּנִי}})
| branch        = [[Israeli Ground Forces|Ground Forces]]
| serviceyears  = 1964–1976
| rank          = ''[[Sgan Aluf]]''
| commands      = [[Sayeret Matkal]]
| unit          = [[Paratroopers Brigade]]
| battles       = {{tree list}}
* [[Arab–Israeli conflict]]
** [[Six-Day War]]
** [[War of Attrition]]
** [[Yom Kippur War]]
** [[Entebbe raid|Operation Entebbe]]{{KIA}}
{{tree list/end}}
| awards        = [[Medal of Distinguished Service]]
| laterwork     = 
| alma_mater    = {{ubl
  | [[Harvard University]]
  | [[Hebrew University of Jerusalem]]
  }}
| spouse        = {{marriage|Tirza Goodman|1967|1972|reason=div}}
| relations     = {{ubl
  | [[Nathan Mileikowsky]] (grandfather)
  | [[Benzion Netanyahu]] (father)
  | [[Elisha Netanyahu]] (uncle)
  | [[Benjamin Netanyahu]] (brother)
  | [[Iddo Netanyahu]] (brother)
  | [[Nathan Netanyahu]] (cousin)
  | [[Yair Netanyahu]] (nephew)
  }}
}}

<!-- To avoid confusion, use "Yonatan" in the lede since there are multiple other Netanyahus (his family members) mentioned here. -->
'''Yonatan Netanyahu'''{{efn|{{langx|he|יוֹנָתָן נְתַנְיָהוּ}}, {{IPA|he|jonaˈtan netanˈjahu|pron}}}} ({{Langx|he|יוֹנָתָן נְתַנְיָהוּ}}; March 13, 1946 – July 4, 1976) was an Israeli military officer who commanded [[Sayeret Matkal]] during the [[Entebbe raid]]. The raid was launched in response to the 1976 hijacking of an international civilian passenger flight from Israel to France by Palestinian and German militants, who took control of the aircraft during a stopover in [[Greece]] and diverted it to [[History of Libya under Muammar Gaddafi|Libya]] and then to [[Second Republic of Uganda|Uganda]], where they received support from Ugandan dictator [[Idi Amin]]. Though Israel's counter-terrorist operation was a success, with 102 of the 106 hostages being rescued, Netanyahu was killed in action – the only Israeli soldier killed during the crisis.

The eldest son of the Israeli professor [[Benzion Netanyahu]] and brother of Israeli Prime Minister [[Benjamin Netanyahu]], Yonatan was born in New York City and spent much of his youth in the United States, where he attended high school. After serving in the Israeli military during the [[Six-Day War]], he briefly attended [[Harvard University]] before transferring to the [[Hebrew University of Jerusalem]] in 1968; soon thereafter, he left his studies and returned to military service in Israel. He joined Sayeret Matkal in the early 1970s and was awarded the [[Medal of Distinguished Service]] for his conduct in the [[Yom Kippur War]]. After his death, Operation Entebbe was renamed "Operation Yonatan" in his honor.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jun/25/entebbe-raid-40-years-on-israel-palestine-binyamin-netanyahu-jonathan-freedland|title= 'We thought this would be the end of us': the raid on Entebbe, 40 years on |website=TheGuardian.com |date= June 25, 2016 |access-date=April 29, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2016/07/03/meet-the-youngest-hostages-freed-by-israeli-commandos-40-years-ago-at-entebbe/|title= Meet the youngest hostages freed by Israeli commandos 40 years ago at Entebbe |website=WashingtonPost.com |access-date=April 29, 2020}}</ref>

==Background==
Yonatan Netanyahu was born in New York City, the eldest son of Tzila ({{nee|Segal}}; 1912–2000) and [[Benzion Netanyahu]] (1910–2012), a [[professor emeritus]] of history at [[Cornell University]]. His mother had been born in [[Petah Tikva]], in what is now Israel, which was then in the [[Ottoman Empire]]'s [[Mutasarrifate of Jerusalem]], while his father was born in [[Warsaw]] and immigrated to Mandate Palestine in 1920. He was named after his paternal grandfather, rabbi [[Nathan Mileikowsky]], and Colonel [[John Henry Patterson (author)|John Henry Patterson]], who formerly commanded the [[Jewish Legion]] and attended his circumcision.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aMARkGMillcC&q=%22house+of+commons%22+balfour+declaration+july+4+1922&pg=PR13|title=The Seven Lives of Colonel Patterson: How an Irish Lion Hunter Led the Jewish Legion to Victory|first=Denis|last=Brian|date=June 26, 2008|publisher=Syracuse University Press|isbn=9780815609278|via=Google Books}}</ref>  His two brothers are Benjamin and Iddo. [[Benjamin Netanyahu|Benjamin]] was elected Prime Minister of Israel in 1996, in 2009 and reelected in [[2013 Israeli legislative election|2013]], [[2015 Israeli legislative election|2015]], [[2020 Israeli legislative election|2020 and 2022]]. [[Iddo Netanyahu|Iddo]], the youngest of the three, is a [[radiologist]] and writer. All three brothers served in Sayeret Matkal.<ref>[https://www.yoni.org.il/en/biogr.php?p=2 "Yoni Netanyahu – Short Biography – Page 2"], Yoni.org</ref>

Netanyahu's family returned to the newly independent state of Israel in 1949 when he was two and settled in Jerusalem. In 1956 the family again moved to the United States before returning to Israel in 1958. Netanyahu attended high school at [[Gymnasia Rehavia]] in Jerusalem. In 1963, when he was in 11th grade, the family returned to the United States, where he attended [[Cheltenham High School]] in [[Wyncote, Pennsylvania]]. He was a classmate of [[National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum|Baseball Hall of Fame]] member [[Reggie Jackson]]. While in high school, he began contemplating his purpose in life, when he wrote in a 1963 letter, "The trouble with the youth here is that their lives are meager in content. I ought to be ready at every moment of my life to confront myself and say&mdash;'This is what I've done'." After graduating in June 1964, he returned to Israel to enlist in the [[Israel Defense Forces]]. He joined the [[Paratroopers Brigade]] and fought in the [[Six-Day War]].<ref name=jsource>{{Cite web|url=https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/yonaton-quot-yoni-quot-netanyahu|title=Yonaton "Yoni" Netanyahu|website=www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org}}</ref><ref name=Baltimore>"Casualties: Jonathan Netanyahu (1946–1976)", ''The Baltimore Sun'', February 15, 1981</ref><ref name=Film/>

Netanyahu married his long-time girlfriend Tirza "Tuti" Goodman on August 17, 1967.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Steinberg |first=Jessica |title=Yoni Netanyahu movie inspires audiences, underwhelms critics |url=http://www.timesofisrael.com/36-years-after-the-entebbe-raid-questionable-memories-about-yoni-netanyahu/ |access-date=2023-10-01 |website=www.timesofisrael.com |language=en-US}}</ref> Shortly after their wedding, they flew to the U.S., where Netanyahu enrolled at [[Harvard University]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=July 6, 2011 |title=Yonatan Netanyahu's odyssey: From Harvard to Entebbe |url=https://www.jpost.com/features/in-thespotlight/yonatan-netanyahus-odyssey-from-harvard-to-entebbe |access-date=2023-10-01 |website=The Jerusalem Post {{!}} JPost.com |language=en-US}}</ref> He took classes in philosophy and mathematics, excelling in both, and was on the [[Dean's List]] at the end of his first year.<ref>Hastings (1979), p. 89.</ref> However, feeling restless at being away from Israel, especially with Israel skirmishing against Egypt during the [[War of Attrition]], he transferred to Jerusalem's [[Hebrew University]] in 1968. In early 1969, he left his studies and returned to the army.<ref name=UPI-77>"Entebbe Hero Paid a Commitment With Death", ''UPI: The Palm Beach Post'', (W. Palm Beach, Florida), March 13, 1977</ref> His father described those decisions, saying "He was dreaming of resuming his studies and planned to do so time and again. Yet he always conditioned his return to Harvard on the relaxation of the military tensions."<ref name=UPI-77/>

In 1972, he and Tuti were divorced. Netanyahu was living with his girlfriend of two years, Bruria, at the time of his death.<ref name=Virtual/>

==Military career==
After graduating high school, Netanyahu joined the [[Israeli Defense Forces]] in 1964. He volunteered to serve in the [[Paratroopers Brigade (IDF)|Paratroopers Brigade]], and excelled in the Officer Training Course. He was eventually given command of a [[paratroopers]] [[Company (military unit)|company]].<ref name=jsource/>

In 1967 he considered college, but the constant threat of war made him stay in Israel: "This is my country and my homeland. It is here that I belong," he wrote. On June 5, 1967, during the [[Six-Day War]], his battalion fought the battle of [[Battle of Abu-Ageila (1967)|Um Katef]] in [[Sinai Peninsula|Sinai]], then reinforced the [[Golan Heights]] battle.<ref name=Virtual /> During the Golan Heights battle, he was wounded while helping rescue a fellow soldier who lay wounded deep behind enemy lines. He was decorated for valor after that war.<ref name=Baltimore />

After being wounded, he returned to the U.S. to study at [[Harvard University]].<ref name=UPI-77 /> But after a year he felt the need to return to Israel to rejoin the army. "At this time," he wrote in a letter, "I should be defending my country. Harvard is a luxury I cannot afford."<ref name=UPI-77 /> He next returned to Harvard in the summer of 1973, but again gave up academic life for Israel's military.<ref name=UPI-77 />

By 1970 he was leading an anti-terrorist reconnaissance unit, Sayeret Matkal (Israeli special forces), and in the summer of 1972 was appointed as the unit's deputy commander.<ref name=Baltimore /> That year he commanded a raid into [[Syria]] named Operation Crate 3, in which senior Syrian officers were abducted and held as bargaining chips to be later exchanged in return for captive Israeli pilots. The following year he participated in [[Operation Spring of Youth]], in which the terrorists and leadership of [[Black September (group)|Black September]] were selectively killed by Sayeret Matkal, [[Shayetet-13]] and the [[Mossad]].<ref name=Virtual />

During the [[Yom Kippur War]] in October 1973, Netanyahu commanded a Sayeret Matkal force in the [[Golan Heights]] that killed more than 40 Syrian commandos in a battle which thwarted the Syrian [[commando]]s' raid in the Golan's heartland. During the same war, he also rescued [[Lieutenant Colonel]] [[Yossi Ben Hanan]] from Tel Shams, while Ben Hanan was lying wounded behind Syrian lines.<ref name=Virtual />

Following the war, Netanyahu was awarded [[Medal of Distinguished Service]] ({{langx|he|עיטור המופת}}), Israel's third highest [[military decoration]], for his rescue of Ben Hanan. Netanyahu then volunteered to serve as an [[armor]] commander, due to the heavy casualties inflicted on the Israeli Armored Corps during the war, with a disproportionate number of these in the officer ranks. Netanyahu excelled in [[Tank]] Officers course, and was given command of the [[Barak Armored Brigade]], which had been shattered during the war. Netanyahu turned his brigade into the leading military unit in the [[Golan Heights]].<ref name=Virtual /> 

===Operation Entebbe===
Netanyahu was [[killed in action]] on July 4, 1976, while commanding the rescue mission during [[Operation Entebbe]].<ref name=Will>Will, George. "Entebbe's 'Jonathan' story: Israel, U.S. share sacred day", ''The Orlando Sentinel'' (Orlando, Florida), July 2, 1981</ref> He was the only Israeli soldier killed during the raid (along with three hostages, all of the [[Revolutionary Cells (German group)|Revolutionary Cells]] members, all of the [[Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine]] members, and dozens of Ugandan soldiers). The commonly accepted version of his death is that Netanyahu fired on Ugandan soldiers, and was shot in response by a Ugandan soldier from the airport's control tower. His family refused to accept this verdict, and insisted instead that he was killed by the German commanding the hijackers.<ref>[[Anshel Pfeffer]],''Bibi: The Turbulent Life and Times of Benjamin Netanyahu,''  C. Hurst & Co., 2018 pp.116–123</ref><ref name="Shatz" >Adam Shatz, [https://www.lrb.co.uk/v40/n16/adam-shatz/the-sea-is-the-same-sea 'The sea is the same sea,'] [[The London Review of Books]] Vol. 40 No. 16 · August 30, 2018, pages 24–28.</ref> Netanyahu was shot outside the building being stormed, and soon died in the arms of [[Efraim Sneh]], commander of the mission's medical unit.<ref name="Freedman, 2016">{{cite news|last1=Freedland|first1=Jonathan|title='We thought this would be the end of us': the raid on Entebbe, 40 years on|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jun/25/entebbe-raid-40-years-on-israel-palestine-binyamin-netanyahu-jonathan-freedland|access-date=July 3, 2016|newspaper=The Guardian|date=June 25, 2016}}</ref> The operation itself was a success, and was renamed as ''Mivtsa Yonatan'' ("Operation Jonathan" in English) in his honor.<ref name=Will />

Netanyahu was buried in Jerusalem's Military Cemetery at [[Mount Herzl]] on July 6 following a military funeral attended by enormous crowds and top-ranking officials.<ref>[http://www.yoni.org.il/en/jonathan.php?p=3 "Yoni’s Last Days – The Raid at Entebbe – Page 3"], Yoni.org</ref> [[Shimon Peres]], then Defense Minister, said during the eulogy that "a bullet had torn the young heart of one of Israel's finest sons, one of its most courageous warriors, one of its most promising commanders – the magnificent Yonatan Netanyahu."<ref name=Virtual>[http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/yonaton-quot-yoni-quot-netanyahu Yonaton "Yoni" Netanyahu biography], ''Jewish Virtual Library''</ref>

There are memorial trees that have been planted in his honor in front of his graduating high school, Cheltenham High School, and a memorial plaque is located in the lobby.

===Personal letters===
In 1980 many of Netanyahu's personal letters were published. Author [[Herman Wouk]] describes them as a "remarkable work of literature, possibly one of the great documents of our time."<ref name=Letters /> Many of his letters were written hurriedly under trying conditions in the field, but according to a review in ''The New York Times'', give a "convincing portrayal of a talented, sensitive man of our times who might have excelled at many things yet chose clearsightedly to devote himself to the practice and mastery of the art of war, not because he liked to kill or wanted to, but because he knew that, as always in human history, good is no match for evil without the power to physically defend itself."<ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/1981/01/25/books/words-of-a-fallen-soldier.html?scp=1&sq=The%20Letters%20of%20Jonathan%20Netanyahu&st=cse  "Words of a Fallen Soldier"] ''New York Times'', January 25, 1981.</ref>

===Biographical play and film===

''[[To Pay the Price]]'' is a  play by [[Peter-Adrian Cohen]] based in part on Netanyahu's letters. The play, produced by North Carolina's Theatre Or,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.theatreor.com|title=theatreor.com|publisher=theatreor.com|access-date=September 1, 2011}}</ref> opened off Broadway in New York in June 2009 during the [[Festival of Jewish Theater and Ideas]].<ref>Untitled Theater Co #61's Fest Of Jewish Theater & Ideas Runs 5/20-6/14 In NYC, ''Broadway World'', May 20, 2009 [http://broadwayworld.com/article/Untitled_Theater_Co_61s_Fest_Of_Jewish_Theater_Ideas_Runs_520614_In_NYC_20090520]</ref> The play had been scheduled to run at the [[New Repertory Theatre]] company near [[Boston]], Massachusetts. The run was canceled after pressure by the Netanyahu family, because the theater was intending to run the play as a companion piece to ''[[My Name Is Rachel Corrie]]''.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.boston.com/news/globe/living/articles/2007/05/09/under_pressure_new_rep_cancels_play/ |title=Under pressure, New Rep cancels play |work=[[The Boston Globe]] |date=May 9, 2007 |access-date=September 1, 2011}}</ref>

The documentary film ''Follow Me'', released in May 2012, is based on Netanyahu's life story and his final mission, leading the successful rescue of Israeli hostages at Entebbe, at the cost of his life. The narration during the film uses transcripts from his personal letters and other spoken words.<ref name=Film>[https://www.filmlinc.org/films/follow-me-the-yoni-netanyahu-story1/ "Follow Me: The Yoni Netanyahu Story"], Film Society Lincoln Center</ref>

==Legacy==
[[File:Yoni Netanyahu's grave.JPG|thumb|{{center|Netanyahu's gravestone (with IDF logo in upper right corner)}}]]
Author [[Herman Wouk]] wrote that Netanyahu was already a legend in Israel even before his death at the age of 30. Wouk wrote:<blockquote>He was a taciturn philosopher-soldier of terrific endurance, a hard-fibered, charismatic young leader, a magnificent fighting man. On the Golan Heights, in the Yom Kippur War, the unit he led was part of the force that held back a sea of Soviet tanks manned by Syrians, in a celebrated stand; and after Entebbe, "Yoni" became in Israel almost a symbol of the nation itself. Today his name is spoken there with somber reverence.<ref name=Letters>Netanyahu, Yonatan. ''The Letters of Jonathan Netanyahu'', Gefen Publ. (1980)</ref>{{rp|vii}}</blockquote>

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his own "hard line against all terrorists" came as a result of the death of his brother.<ref>[[Gordon Thomas (author)|Thomas, Gordon]]. ''Gideon's Spies: The Secret History of the Mossad'', [[Macmillan Publishers]] (2009) p. 145{{ISBN missing}}</ref>

===The Jonathan Institute===
Netanyahu's father commented in 1977 that Yoni would have been disappointed with the West's reactions against terrorism. "He would, I think, express great dismay and concern at the weakness and indecision displayed by some democracies toward this phenomenon," he said. "He felt that there are principles that must be upheld if civilization itself is to survive."<ref name=UPI-77/>

In 1979,  Jonathan Institute was founded by Benjamin Netanyahu to sponsor international conferences on terrorism. One of its first speakers, U.S. Senator [[Henry M. Jackson]], then Chairman of the [[United States Senate Committee on Armed Services|Armed Services Committee]], who gave a talk titled "Terrorism as a Weapon in International Politics", described the purpose of the conference and its relation to Jonathan Netanyahu.<ref>Netanyahu, Benjamin. editor. [https://books.google.com/books?id=s8Pm37gg5JkC&dq=international+terrorism+jonathan+institute&pg=PP6 "International Terrorism: Challenge and Response"], Jonathan Institute (1981)</ref> Two conferences organized by the Jonathan Institute, in Jerusalem in July 1979 and  Washington, D.C. in June 1984, were attended by government officials and attracted significant press coverage.

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Bibliography==
*''Self-Portrait of a Hero: From the Letters of Jonathan Netanyahu 1963–1976''; Netanyahu, Jonathan/Netanyahu, Benjamin/Netanyahu, Iddo (1998); [[Warner Books]]. {{ISBN|0-446-67461-3}}
*''The Letters of Jonathan Netanyahu : The Commander of the Entebbe Rescue Operation''; Jonathan Netanyahu (2001); Gefen Publishing House. {{ISBN|978-965-229-267-4}} (variation of the above)
*''Yoni: Hero of Entebbe''; Max Hastings (1979); DoubleDay. {{ISBN|978-0-385-27127-1}} (a biography of Yoni Netanyahu)
*''Entebbe: A Defining Moment in the War on Terrorism{{snd}}The Jonathan Netanyahu Story''; Iddo Netanyahu (2003); Balfour Books. {{ISBN|978-0-89221-553-9}}
*''Yoni's Last Battle: The Rescue at Entebbe, 1976''; Iddo Netanyahu, Yoram Harzony (2001); [[Gefen Publishing House]]. {{ISBN|978-965-229-283-4}}
*''Yoni Netanyahu: Commando at Entebbe''; Devra Newberger Speargen (1997); [[Jewish Publication Society of America]]. {{ISBN|978-0-8276-0642-5}}

==External links==
{{commonscat|Jonathan Netanyahu|Yonatan&nbsp;Netanyahu}}
* {{OL author|OL220345A}}

{{Benjamin Netanyahu}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Netanyahu, Yonatan}}
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