On the anniversary of the Sabena Flight 571 hijacking, the IDF's fifth Brigade held ground force drills attended by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The Sabena Flight 571 hijacking occurred on May 8, 1972, when four Black September terrorists infiltrated the cockpit of a plane headed from Vienna to Lod. The terrorist were demanding the release of over 300 Palestinians from Israeli prisons.
Netanyahu participated in the Matkal unit's rescue operation of the 90 hostages, and recounted the events to the
"Today we mark the 53rd anniversary of the operation to free the hostages on the Sabena plane," Netanyahu said on Thursday. "I was there, I was injured there."
Netanyahu said that the spirit he saw in the Thursday drill matched that of his unit during the 1972 operation.
Netanyahu warns Hamas: 'The rules are about to change'
"The spirit has not changed - it is exactly the same spirit that I see here that pulsates among the soldiers and commanders, and unites the ranks with one goal - to achieve a great victory. This victory includes both the defeat of Hamas and the release of our hostages."
The prime minister went on to say that defeating Hamas and releasing the hostages would change the face of the Middle East.
"This victory goes beyond that. It radiates throughout the entire region. To this day, we have changed the face of the Middle East. We brought Hezbollah to its knees, Hamas – below the knees, the Assad regime fell. Iran also felt the strength of our arm," he said.
"We still face challenges, but we have a strong spirit, and that spirit is carried by our army," he added.
"To Hamas I say one thing: the rules are about to change very soon – thanks to you.”
What happened to Sabena Flight 571?
After the four terrorists hijacked the flight, Captain Reginald Levy sent distress signals to Israel. The signals were relayed to the Defense Ministry.
After the plane made an emergency landing at the Lod airport, former defense minister Moshe Dayan began negotiating with the Black September members while simultaneously planning a secret rescue operation for the 90 passengers on the plane.
Israeli agents secretly sabotaged the plane, leading the terrorists to believe that there was a technical failure. The Black September members then sent Captain Levy to talk with Israeli negotiators at the airport. He took the opportunity to describe the events in detail, and noted that the terrorists had not secured the emergency exits.
"He somehow persuaded the hijackers to let him go over to the terminal to talk to the Israelis. Before he left, they gave him a piece of the plastic explosive to show that they meant business in their threat to blow up the plane," Levy's daughter Linda Lipschitz recounted to the Post.
Dayan then told the terrorists that he would send the requested Palestinian prisoners to the airport along with technicians to repair the plane.
Then, a team of 16 Sayeret Matkal commandos led by former prime minister Ehud Barak approached the plane disguised as mechanics, stormed it, shot dead the two male hijackers, captured the two female hijackers, and rescued the 90 passengers.