Monday marked the 40th anniversary of the heroic Israeli operation to free some 100 hostages held by German and Palestinian terrorists at the Entebbe airport in Uganda. In the course of the operation, its commanding officer, Jonathan (Yoni) Netanyahu, brother of the current prime minister, lost his life. Fiamma Nirenstein reflects on the raid’s significance:

Only a sense of moral necessity, dictated by history, could inspire . . . an action like the one Israel boldly carried out in Entebbe, 3,500 kilometers from its borders. . . .

The objective was to rescue the Jewish prisoners held by the terrorists, thus definitely putting an end to the idea that Jews are easy prey for anti-Semites, who have directed their furor against the Jewish people throughout history while the world looked on with indifference. . . .

The image of [Yoni Netanyahu], the generous young hero cut down in the field of battle, in the full of his young life, has come to represent the same Israeli audacity—envied by the whole world—that led to the bombing of Iraq’s Osirak nuclear reactor (another mission impossible) and the kidnapping Adolf Eichmann. Entebbe is, along with the Six-Day War, the achievement that more than any other has changed the image of the Jewish people in the eyes of the world, as well as the Jews’ own perception of themselves.

No longer are Jews sheep being led to the slaughter; instead they are doers of deeds once deemed impossible. Since then, Jews no longer need feel abandoned to the whims of their enemies. Jews can now believe that someone will come for them—and those people will be Israeli soldiers. Since Entebbe, Jews are no longer alone.

On Tuesday, a Hizballah drone attack injured three people in northern Israel. The next day, another attack, targeting an IDF base, injured eighteen people, six of them seriously, in Arab al-Amshe, also in the north. This second attack involved the simultaneous use of drones carrying explosives and guided antitank missiles. In both cases, the defensive systems that performed so successfully last weekend failed to stop the drones and missiles. Ron Ben-Yishai has a straightforward explanation as to why: the Lebanon-backed terrorist group is getting better at evading Israel defenses. He explains the three basis systems used to pilot these unmanned aircraft, and their practical effects:

These systems allow drones to act similarly to fighter jets, using “dead zones”—areas not visible to radar or other optical detection—to approach targets. They fly low initially, then ascend just before crashing and detonating on the target. The terrain of southern Lebanon is particularly conducive to such attacks.

But this requires skills that the terror group has honed over months of fighting against Israel. The latest attacks involved a large drone capable of carrying over 50 kg (110 lbs.) of explosives. The terrorists have likely analyzed Israel’s alert and interception systems, recognizing that shooting down their drones requires early detection to allow sufficient time for launching interceptors.

The IDF tries to detect any incoming drones on its radar, as it had done prior to the war. Despite Hizballah’s learning curve, the IDF’s technological edge offers an advantage. However, the military must recognize that any measure it takes is quickly observed and analyzed, and even the most effective defenses can be incomplete. The terrain near the Lebanon-Israel border continues to pose a challenge, necessitating technological solutions and significant financial investment.