Thousands of Israelis gathered in Rabin square in Tel Aviv Saturday night for a memorial event marking the 18th anniversary of the assassination of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin.
Politicians, public figures and religious leaders from across the political spectrum were attending the gathering, as well as numerous representatives from Israel’s youth movements.
During the rally, titled “Remembering the murder, fighting for democracy,” Rabin’s grandson, Yonatan Ben Artzi, urged Israel’s Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu to bring peace to Israel.
Rabin was assassinated by a right-wing Israeli extremist, Yigal Amir, following a rally for peace on November 4, 1995. But Saturday’s ceremony was held according to the Hebrew calendar.
"For the first time in years, a special opportunity has been put in your path, to take advantage of a unique situation in order to bring peace and solve both the Iranian and Palestinian conflicts at the same time. All of this with support and encouragement from the international community," Ben-Artzi declared.
"This will not be easy, and certainly will not always popular. But history shows that leaders' merits are tested in unpopular times. I believe this is your time," he added.
Yitzhak Rabin was Israel’s army chief of staff during the Six Day War in 1967. He was later ambassador to the US, Defense Minister and twice Prime Minister.
In 1994, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize along with then-Foreign Minister Shimon Peres and PLO chairman Yasser Arafat for his part in signing the Oslo Peace accords a year earlier.