Skip To Content
JEWISH. INDEPENDENT. NONPROFIT.
Breaking News

Peres at Rabin Memorial: Ruling Over Another People Against Jewish Values

Israel can not protect its Jewish and democratic character without peace, former President Shimon Peres said at a memorial for assassinated Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin.

“Peace has become a derogatory term. There are those who say that those who believe in peace are naive, not patriots, delusional. But I say to all those in a clear voice, those who give up on peace are the ones who are delusional,” Peres said Sunday night to thousands of people gathered in Rabin Square in Tel Aviv for the event.

Rabin was assassinated 19 years ago by jailed assailant Yigal Amir. Wednesday marks the anniversary on the Hebrew calendar of the assassination.

“Ruling over another people is against our values as Jews. To pursue peace is a mitzvah. It’s also very practical – very Jewish,” Peres said.

The event was organized by organizations including: the Israeli Peace Initiative and November 4th groups, and had a more political overtone.

A second memorial, sponsored by a coalition of groups from the left and the right, including youth movements, is set for Nov. 8 in Rabin Square. President Reuven Rivlin will serve as keynote speaker of the rally, which will remember Rabin’s life and legacy, the Dror Israeli Movement announced Sunday.

Republish This Story

Please read before republishing

We’re happy to make this story available to republish for free, unless it originated with JTA, Haaretz or another publication (as indicated on the article) and as long as you follow our guidelines. You must credit the Forward, retain our pixel and preserve our canonical link in Google search.  See our full guidelines for more information, and this guide for detail about canonical URLs.

To republish, copy the HTML by clicking on the yellow button to the right; it includes our tracking pixel, all paragraph styles and hyperlinks, the author byline and credit to the Forward. It does not include images; to avoid copyright violations, you must add them manually, following our guidelines. Please email us at [email protected], subject line “republish,” with any questions or to let us know what stories you’re picking up.

We don't support Internet Explorer

Please use Chrome, Safari, Firefox, or Edge to view this site.