Knesset remembers slain PM Rabin

The Knesset plenum convened for a special session commemorating the 14th anniversary of the assassination of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin Thursday.

"The secret to Rabin's charm, for me, was the fact that he was first and foremost a patriot," Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said as he took the podium. "That fateful night saw a heinous killer point a gun at Rabin's bare back and a patriot taken down by a murderer who fired a bullet at the heart of the nation.

"In every one of the positions he held in life, from the young warrior fighting for the country, to the premiership, he made decisions he thought would be in the public's interest," said the PM.

"We did not always see eye to eye, but even when we profoundly disagreed I always had the greatest respect for him because I knew that his decisions stemmed from what he believed was best for the country… still, even today, there are some who refuse to accept democratic choices and the preeminence of the law.

Netanyahu concluded his address by saying, "We will continue to follow Rabin's path – to do what is best for the people. I pray that when the time comes to make the bigger decisions that lay ahead, we will know to respect each other and the law."

Labor Chairman Ehud Barak chose to speak of the radical elements who incited violence in the weeks prior to the assassination, saying those elements were still active within the Israeli society, "As if an Israeli prime minister was never murdered, and as if we had never stared at the abyss.

"The horrible loss, experienced by the majority of Israelis, regardless of their political views, failed to yield unity and solidarity. Instead, it left behind colossal gaps and increased feelings of animosity."  

'General of peace' 

"Rabin surprised us all. 'Mr. security', head of the Israel Defense Forces chose to make peace his strategy," Opposition Chairwoman Tzipi Livni said as she addressed the plenum.

"He made that choice at a time when a choice between peace and security seemed inevitable. He made his decision not as a dreamer who was not in touch with reality, but as someone who had a profound understanding of the alternatives."

Knesset Speaker Reuven Rivlin, who was the first to take the podium at Thursday's session, said, "Rabin's murder has finally affected all layers of Israeli society. Many now understand just how deep a fracture the murder caused in each and every one of us.