A bipartisan group of lawmakers from the U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives have introduced identical resolutions in their respective chambers to remember former Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin ahead of the 25th anniversary of his assassination.
The Senate resolution was introduced by Sens. Ben Cardin (D-Md.), while the House one was introduced by Reps. Dean Phillips (D-Minn.).
The Senate resolution is being co-sponsored by Sens. Rob Portman (R-Ohio), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Kevin Kramer (R-N.D.), Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) and Chris Murphy (D-Conn.).
The House resolution is being co-sponsored by Reps. Tom Reed (R-N.Y.), Eliot Engel (D-N.Y.), Karen Bass (D-Calif.), Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.), Ted Deutch (D-Fla.) and Jamie Raskin (D-Md.).
The resolution praises Rabin for signing the 1975 interim Israel-Egypt peace agreement, which led to the 1979 Camp David Peace Treaty between the two countries; for signing the 1993 Oslo Accords; and for signing the 1994 Israel-Jordan peace treaty.
The measure includes several quotes from Rabin. It calls him “a model for securing peace during a time of conflict.”
The resolution, which also emphasizes U.S. support for a two-state solution, comes amid Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) withdrawing last month from an Americans for Peace Now event on Oct. 20 memorializing Rabin after she received criticism from far-left activists.
However, Jewish Insider reported that “work on the resolution started a month ago, before the controversy began,” citing a Capitol Hill staffer familiar with the measure.
Rabin served as Israel’s prime minister between 1974 and 1977, and from 1992 until he was assassinated on Nov. 4, 1995 by Jewish extremist Yigal Amir for efforts to make peace between the Israelis and Palestinians.
