Current sectionIsrael NewsIsrael SecurityOkamoto was sentenced to three life terms in Israel for his role in the attack but was released after 13 years under a prisoner exchange deal. He made his last public appearance in 2022 at a Lebanon ceremony marking the attack's 50th anniversaryShare to FacebookShare to XArticle printing is available to subscribers onlyPrint in a simple, ad-free formatSubscribeComments: Zen reading is available to subscribers onlyAd-free and in a comfortable reading formatSubscribeOfer Aderet08:00 PM • July 23 2026 IDTJapanese militant Kōzō Okamoto, who killed 24 people in the 1972 attack at Lod Airport in Israel, died Thursday at the age of 78. Okamoto later became a celebrated figure among some supporters of the Palestinian cause in the Arab world. Loading...Click the alert icon to follow topics:JapanTerrorismLebanonPalestiniansBen-Gurion AirportHistoryCommentsLoading...In the NewsIn the News: Live UpdatesTrumpEisenkotMamdani-NetanyahuPalestinian AuthorityLindsey GrahamIsrael ElectionsHaQuizHaaretz PodcastMossad Says It Foiled Iranian Plot to Assassinate Senior Israeli OfficialsAre These the People Who Will Reverse the Damage Netanyahu Did to Israel?Ex-coalition MK: Lawmakers Were Ordered to Film Their Vote for PM Watchdog PickEven if Israel Ends Settler Violence, the Violence of the Occupation Will RemainEilat Resident Arrested on Suspicion of Murdering a Migrant Worker in JerusalemRemembering and rebuilding two years laterICYMIThe Most Optimistic Israeli in Jerusalem Is Leaving the CountryAs Ground Invasion Looms, U.S. and Iran Want Wild-card Israel Out of the FightThe Original Ozempic Society of Ancient RomeBetween Messi and Milei: How Argentina Became Israel's Team at the World Cup'Choose Hope': Natalie Portman Backs Arab-Jewish Party Ahead of Israeli ElectionHélène Cixous: 'I Accept Israel's Existence, but I Don't Identify With It'