Memories: November 1995

B"H

This coming Wednesday, 24th October 2007, Israel remembers the 12th anniversary of the assassination of former Prime Minister Yitzchak Rabin.

Every year, the anniversary brings back all the pictures in our minds. Pictures we saw right after the shooting and afterwards. A country was in shock and, for a short period of time, helpless to deal with itself.

When Yitzchak Rabin was assassinated on November 4th, 1995, I was studying Hebrew in an Ulpan in Kibbutz Givat Brenner near Rehovot. Our Ulpan was almost over and soon we would leave the Kibbutz. As far as I remember, November 4th, was a Shabbat and the whole day I was thinking to join some friends who were planning to go to Tel Aviv in the evening. A huge celebration should take place in Ibn Gavirol Street, right in front of the Tel Aviv municipality.

However, we decided to stay in the Kibbutz, as we were not really in the mood to face all the crowd at the demonstration. Instead, we watched "Crocodile Dundee 2" on TV. As we were in the middle of the movie, suddenly a black screen appeared. First we thought that there was a technical problem but soon we saw a news studio. Journalists were running around and it was clear that something had happened. We did not get too excited, as such interruptions are nothing new in Israel where something happens every few hours. We are just used to it.

A reporter announced that apparently someone shot at Prime Minister Yitzchak Rabin but nothing is certain. A female eye witness claimed that nothing whatsoever had happened and that Rabin was save. The nation took a deep breath and believed her.
We thought that the movie would continue now, but nothing happened. A few minutes later, the sad announcement took place. Yitzchak Rabin had died at the Ichilov - Hospital where he was taken. The country stopped breathing for a few seconds and none of us could really believe what had happened. Things like that take place in Hollywood or in Dallas, where President Kennedy was shot, but not in Israel.

The famous Israeli news caster Yaakov Eylon did not know what to say. He sat in his studio and probably thought that he is just in the middle of a nightmare. The rest of the evening was filled with media reports and we saw a young man with a black Kipa getting arrested. A Jew had killed a Jew ? Each of us expected a Muslim murderer. The message that a religious Jew had killed Rabin was an even greater shock for the whole nation.

The next morning when I came into the Kibbutz Dining - Room, things were bad. The Kibbutz members were speechless and it was totally quiet. A friend of mine, an elderly lady (born in Berlin before the Holocaust) asked me: "Nu, what do you say about this" ?

The teacher of our Ulpan class tried to teach us the words of the last song, Rabin had sung at the demonstration: "Shir Le'Shalom". There was not much to teach that day, as everybody was too shocked.

The following days were a catastrophe for the whole nation. Unfortunately, the press and Yitzchak Rabin's widow Lea started an unnecessary war against the religious population. It is understandable that Lea Rabin was mourning about her husband, however, there is no reason to accuse the whole religious population of being guilty. Her second war was against the opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu. Netanyahu had done nothing when his followers held up posters showing Rabin in a Nazi uniform. Lea Rabin considered this as supporting certain extreme ideas.

Kibbutz Givat Brenner organized a bus to the Knesset. Members could get a ride in order to see Yitzchak Rabin's coffin in front of the Knesset. Some Ulpan members, including myself, were lucky to get a ride on the bus as well. After an hour we arrived in Jerusalem. Although it was after 10pm, the place around the Knesset was packed with thousands of people. We were told that it takes about another six hours until we are standing in front of the coffin.

The Kibbutzniks decided to go home.

A day or so later, I went to the funeral of Yitzchak Rabin. It was impossible getting near Mount Herzl and eventually I watched everything on a TV screen in a Jerusalem restaurant. I have never seen the streets of Jerusalem so abandoned as on that day.

Every day, we heard different news. Suddenly someone came up with the idea that not Yigal Amir had killed Rabin but the Shabak (interior secret service). Obviously some friends of Yigal Amir were involved in the assassination as well and even worked as informants for the Shabak.

There are rumours until this day that Amir shot Rabin but that the shots did not cause his dead. Rather, he was killed by Shabak agents inside the car; on the way to the hospital. More and more people believe in this theory and some books were written about it. Honestly, I am not sure whom to believe but it seems obvious that Yigal Amir killed Rabin.

Later on, the police took Yigal Amir to the place where the murder had taken place. Right in front of the steps on the backside of the municipality. Amir explained where he stood and how he shot the Prime Minister.

A video appeared. Someone had taken it before and after Rabin was killed. The person sold his video for lots of money to a TV channel (see below). The video was shown on TV but it did not solve too many questions. On the contrary, it even raised more questions such as, how could Amir have been standing there for such a long time without being checked ? How could he have access to a "sterile" location where famous politicians were walking around ?

A whole country was mourning. Rabin was never a great person to communicate. Some people even described him as autistic. He was a chain smoker, used to love his TV - set and ate lots of chocolate bars. Nevertheless, especially the young people mourned for him. Suddenly they saw in him a kind of a father figure who vanished.

Days later, I went to the Tel Aviv municipality and saw thousands of people in mourning. Youngsters were sitting on the floor and crying or drawing graffiti on the walls of the municipality.

When you visit the place today, you will find a monument at the place where Rabin was shot. And some of the graffiti are still on the walls.

We will never forget, this is how Israelis thought at that time. Who could have known that already one year later, everything was different. The years after the assassination made Rabin a forgotten figure. We had to continue life and new politicians followed. Of course, people remember but sometimes it seems that it is more and more a necessity. One day of remembrance and then business as usual.

Who speaks about Rabin today ?

Hardly anyone, to be honest. Life goes on the the sad fact is that the murderer Yigal Amir is more in the news than Rabin. Amir recently got married to the Russian born new immigrant Larissa Trimbovler and she is supposed to give birth to their first child any day. The worst would be when she does so on the very day, Rabin was killed. According to the Hebrew calendar this coming Wednesday.

Yigal Amir is always with us. Still smiling in his arrogant way and ignoring his deeds. He does not regret anything but wants his rights. Of course, he has the right to get married but has he ever thought about his future child ? The child of the most famous killer in the country. What kind of future does this child have ? The child would be better of living somewhere abroad instead of being the baby of the killer.

Fact is that Yitzchak Rabin did more for his country than Yigal Amir will ever do. The Prime Minister had won the Six - Day - War and it was him who decided to free the Entebbe hostages. Only because of such people as Yitzchak Rabin, people like Yigal Amir still have a country called Israel.

But it cannot be denied that despite all his successes in life, Rabin completely failed with his Oslo Agreements. Maybe due to his agreements, people are not really in the mood to mourn. Today, politicians talk about dividing Jerusalem and giving up more and more land. Rabin was the forerunner for this policy and soon, Israelis might be too fed up, as none of the attempts brought a real success.


The last minutes of Yitzchak Rabin