TEL AVIV — Gil Dickmann addressed a rally in Tel Aviv's Habima Square on Saturday, July 4, 2026, calling for a state investigation into government failures related to the October 7 Massacre. During the event, Dickmann challenged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu by contrasting his actions with those of Netanyahu's late brother, Yoni Netanyahu, during the 1976 Entebbe raid.

Dickmann quoted the Prime Minister, stating, "He [Netanyahu] dared to say that he 'returned all the abductees who were in the war.'" He contrasted this with Yoni Netanyahu, who commanded Israeli forces during "Operation Thunderbolt" in 1976. The operation, later renamed Operation Yonathan, rescued 102 of 106 hostages taken by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) after they hijacked an Air France plane and diverted it to Uganda. Yoni Netanyahu, who held the rank of Lieutenant Colonel, was killed during the operation.

Dickmann, the cousin of hostage Carmel Gat who was killed, drew a distinction between the brothers. "Yoni gave his life to save abductees. Benjamin gave the lives of the abductees to save himself," Dickmann said. He also posed a question to the Prime Minister: "Exactly 50 years ago today, your brother Yoni Netanyahu, the late, set out to free abductees in Entebbe and was killed there. Would you also say about Yoni that he returned from Entebbe?" In a separate statement on X/Twitter, Dickmann alleged that "very senior people in Israel" threatened hostage families with the intent "to silence us, intimidate us, and give the government full credit to continue the war indefinitely and abandon the hostages in Gaza until they are forgotten." Dickmann previously spoke at the Knesset Finance Committee in March 2025.