Some 150 staff members of the Consulate General of Israel in New York gathered on Wednesday to mark 29 years, on the Hebrew calendar, since the assassination of Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin on Nov. 4, 1995.
“A cowardly act took the life of a democratically elected leader,” said Ofir Akunis, the consul general of Israel in New York. “Rabin’s assassination was an attempt to strike at the heart of Israeli democracy. It remains a dark day in our nation’s history.”
The Israeli lawyer Noa Rothman, Rabin’s granddaughter, attended the ceremony.
“This year, especially, with so many of our symbols shattered and changed, with many Israelis feeling broken and challenged, they nonetheless rally on all fronts to protect the country and the Zionist dream,” Rothman said.
“I hope we can learn to live again, not just survive—to live a life that is worthy, cultural, ethical, original and full of courage, as Zionism has always fought to uphold our difficult and cherished land, despite the challenges,” she added.
Ariella Rada, spokeswoman of Israel in New York, told JNS that “Prime Minister Rabin taught us all the importance of living a life of values, of exercising courage and of eternally yearning for peace.”
“Most importantly, in all these things, he led by example,” she said. “I, and every Israeli, remembers where they were that terrible Motzei Shabbat.”
“Rabin’s assassination was a chilling moment. In a chapter of Israeli history of unprecedented unity, where our unity is our greatest strength, we must never forget these lessons of the past,” she added. “We must maintain the unity of our days of tragedy and bring it into our days of triumph.”
