Israeli Ambassador to India Reuven Azar on Tuesday called on the international community to stand firm against terrorism, delivering the message ahead of the 50th anniversary of Operation Entebbe — Israel's landmark 1976 counter-terrorist rescue mission in Uganda. The remarks were made at an event hosted by the United Service Institution of India in New Delhi.

The Entebbe Message

Ambassador Azar drew a direct line from the Entebbe operation to present-day conflicts, arguing that the mission's legacy carries enduring relevance. 'We see that there is a constant attempt to abuse international norms and to harm the innocent in order to achieve, in a deceitful and malign way, political goals... And, I think it's a goal, both of India, Israel and the rest of the international community, not to surrender to terrorism,' he said.

Azar also referenced the 7 October Hamas attack on Israel as the trigger for what he described as 'one of our harshest and longest wars in our history.' He said the subsequent Israeli military campaign was designed to ensure such an attack 'cannot happen again.' The ambassador stressed that 'Entebbe gave us the inspiration that we need to prove the world that terrorism can be defeated' and that its lessons 'are being learned around the world up until today.'

India-Israel Defence and Bilateral Cooperation

Beyond the counter-terrorism message, Ambassador Azar highlighted the deepening bilateral relationship between India and Israel. He noted that the two countries have signed multiple agreements during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Israel earlier this year, and that those agreements are now in the implementation phase.

Azar confirmed that retired Major General Amir Baram, Director General of the Israeli Ministry of Defence, visited India the previous week to advance what the ambassador described as 'very important' programmes aimed at upgrading mutual defence capabilities. The visit signals active momentum in the defence corridor between the two nations.

Strategic Significance

'I'm confident that as we continue working together, the solutions and the added value of that will be serving both Indian people and Israelis,' Azar said. The remark underscores a relationship that has evolved well beyond defence into technology, agriculture, and water management cooperation.

This comes amid ongoing global scrutiny of Israel's military operations in Gaza, making the ambassador's public engagement in India — a country that has historically maintained strategic autonomy on the Israel-Palestine question — diplomatically noteworthy. India has not formally condemned Israel's post-October 7 campaign, and the expanding bilateral agenda suggests New Delhi is deepening practical ties even as it navigates multilateral sensitivities.

What Comes Next

With the Entebbe anniversary serving as a symbolic backdrop, Israeli officials appear to be using the occasion to reinforce the counter-terrorism framing of their ongoing military posture. For India, the deepening defence cooperation — particularly at the level of the Israeli Ministry of Defence — points to a relationship that is becoming more operationally substantive. Further implementation milestones on the agreements signed during Modi's visit are expected in the months ahead.