YATOM, EHUD (1948– ).A former Israeli Security Agency(ISA) of-
ficer with rank equivalent to major general in the Israel Defense Forces
(IDF), Yatom’s reputation became tarnished following the 1984 Bus
300 Affair. Under his command, two terrorists who hijacked the bus
and surrendered to Israeli forces were later killed. Yatom maintained
that it was standard practice in 1984 that no terrorist who took hostages
would escape alive. In 1986 Yatom received a presidential pardon be-
fore ever being tried, in an unprecedented legal procedure. He contin-
ued to serve the ISA in the most senior positions until 1997.
In June 2001 Prime Minister Ariel Sharon appointed Yatom as his
adviser on counterterrorism. This move provoked a storm of protest
and a petition to the Israeli Supreme Court from members of the left-
wing Meretz party. In December 2001 the Supreme Court ruled that
Yatom could no longer serve in this office because of his role in the
Bus 300 Affair. In 2003 he was elected a member of the Knesset on
the Likud party list. He is a member of several Knesset committees,
including the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee.YEHONATHAN OPERATION.Originally named the Entebbe Oper-
ation and also known as the Thunderball Operation or Thunderbolt
Operation; later named for Lieutenant Colonel Yehonathan “Yoni”
Netanyahu, who was killed during the operation. It took place on the
night of 3/4 July 1976.
On 27 June 1976, Air France flight 139 with 246 passengers from
Tel Aviv’s Ben- Gurion Airport to Paris was hijacked after taking off
from its stopover in Athens. It was diverted to Benghazi airport in
Libya and then forced to take off again and fly to Entebbe, Uganda.
The hijackers were eight members of the Palestine Liberation Or-
ganization (PLO) and two members of the Baader-Meinhof terrorist
gang. They were apparently supported by the Ugandan regime of the
pro-Palestinian dictator Idi Amin. From Entebbe, the hijackers de-
manded that the government of Israel release convicted Palestinian
terrorist murderers, setting a deadline of 30 June.
In principle, the government of Israel is against any kind of bar-
gaining with hijackers or meeting their demands even partially. To
do so might serve as a precedent for further hijacking attempts. The
alternative course, a rescue attempt by means of a military operation,
was opposed by certain Israeli ministers because insufficient intelli-
gence was available. The IDF chief of the General Staff (CGS),YEHONATHAN OPERATION• 31706-102 (04) Q-Z.qxd 3/24/06 7:26 AM Page 317