Israel marks 1995 assassination of Rabin

Israeli leaders marked on Wednesday the 22nd anniversary of the assassination of prime minister Yitzhak Rabin, with President Reuven Rivlin calling his murder one of the Jewish people's lowest points.

Rabin was gunned down in Tel Aviv after a peace rally on November 4, 1995 by Jewish extremist Yigal Amir who opposed the Oslo Accords.

Speaking at a memorial ceremony at the Jerusalem cemetery, Rivlin said his murder was "one of the greatest crises, an emergency," in which Israeli democracy faced "a clear and present danger".

"A true democracy can and should bear differences of opinion," Rivlin said, "but not violence."

At a special session at parliament, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called for "national reconciliation and unity".

"Violence is wrong, especially when aimed at heads of states and elected officials," Netanyahu said. "National decisions are made at the ballots and nowhere else."

The former chief of military staff won the 1994 Nobel Peace Prize jointly with Shimon Peres and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat for his role in negotiating the Oslo peace accords, which envisioned an independent Palestinian state.

Netanyahu and his Likud party have often been accused of taking part in the hate campaign that preceded Rabin's assassination.

Last year, Netanyahu posted video clips taken before the assassination, showing him condemning virulent statements against Rabin.

Source: AFP