Why Is This Famous Israeli Commando At The Taj?

Don't be fooled by this smiling pensioner with his missus at the Taj Mahal on Sunday, March 6, 2022.

This 80 year old was once the man most feared by terrorists in the Arab world.

'During his service as a commando in the elite Sayeret Matkal,' Wikipedia tells us, he 'led several highly acclaimed operations, such as: Operation Isotope, the mission to free the hostages on board the hijacked Sabena Flight 571 at Lod airport in 1972; the covert 1973 Israeli raid on Lebanon in Beirut, in which he was disguised as a woman to kill members of the Palestine Liberation Organisation.'

He 'was also a key architect of the June 1976 Operation Entebbe, another rescue mission to free the hostages of the Air France aircraft hijacked by terrorists and forced to land at Entebbe airport in Uganda.'

'These highly acclaimed operations, along with Operation Bayonet, led to the dismantling of Palestinian terrorist cell Black September.'

He is one of the three most decorated soldiers in Israeli military history.

After his distinguished career in the Israel Defence Force, he served as defence minister and deputy prime minister before serving as prime minister from 1999 to 2011.

Ehud Barak turned 80 on February 12 and his trip to the Taj with wife Nili Priel was likely on his bucket list.

Please click on the image to view better this legendary fighter against terrorism.

Photograph curated by Anant Salvi/Rediff.com
Feature Presentation: Mahipal Soni/Rediff.com