News
Knesset, political leaders mark anniversary of Rabin assassination
Officials ceremonies, including a special Knesset session took place yesterday to mark the 19th anniversary of the assassination of Israel’s former-Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin.
Rabin, who also served as Defence Minister and IDF Chief of Staff, was shot by a right-wing extremist at a peace rally in Tel Aviv. Rabin had been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize having agreed the Oslo Accords with the Palestinian leadership.
Speaking at a ceremony at Rabin’s graveside on Mount Herzl in Jerusalem, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Rabin well understood that “any agreement that is not based on security will not last. Paper alone does not keep the peace.” He added that, “Rabin wanted to base peace on mutual compromise while maintaining Israel’s security,” but that Palestinian compromise had not been forthcoming.
Meanwhile, at a Knesset session later in the day, opposition leader and Labour head Isaac Herzog spoke warmly about Rabin’s “values of democracy, security, peace, economic growth, and building a Jewish and democratic state in the spirit of the Declaration of Independence.” Herzog served as an advisor to Rabin during his time as Labour leader. Contrasting Rabin’s legacy with today’s government, Herzog added “Rabin dealt with a violent intifada like the one we see today … He would say to all of us: There is no war on terrorism without diplomatic negotiations at the same time.”
Speaking at a memorial ceremony at his official residence, President Reuven Rivlin acknowledged that he and Rabin disagreed over the Oslo Accords. Yet, Rivlin said, “Our disagreement was a worthwhile debate, between two true lovers of this land.” President Rivlin praised “Rabin’s legacy … to bravely face tough decisions. Rabin did not sit and wait idly for a post-peace Israel; he was bold enough to deal with the Israel of here and now.”
Meanwhile, to mark the anniversary of Rabin’s killing, the Education Ministry’s Society and Youth Administration held a special dialogue between religious and secular citizens in 12 cities on the topic of “Mutual values in Israeli society.”