Tens of thousands of people gathered at Tel Aviv's Yitzhak Rabin Square Saturday night for the main memorial service marking the 13th assassination anniversary of the former Israeli prime minister.
During his speech, President Shimon Peres warned of the possible disintegration of Israeli society due to internal strife.
"True, we are in the midst of a crisis, there is no point in denying it. The disputes between us have intensified, and they are severely harming the great human fabric that is the State of Israel," local daily Yedioth Ahronoth quoted Peres as saying.
"You are Israel's backbone," the president told those on the scene, adding that "you are the ones who care, and Israel's future and hopes depend on you."
Peres requested to relay a message of unity, saying "next year at Rabin Square I want to see those Israelis who do not identify with this memorial service."
Labor Party Chairman and Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak referred to the Jewish extremists' threats, saying that "we used to call them weeds, today they are no less than cancerous growths."
"We promise you Yitzhak, we will remove this evil from us," said Barak. "We are here to carry the hope until it materializes. You, Yitzhak, the torchbearer, were murdered, but the flame has not died. Your dream will triumph."
Ruling Kadima party Chairwoman and Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni said that "in the worst possible way, those three gunshots (that killed Rabin) united the citizens of Israel for a second, and then they became divided once again. I didn't vote for Rabin, but he was also my prime minister."
Earlier this week, several events were held throughout the country in Rabin's honor. During a memorial at the Holon Theater on Sunday, the slain prime minister's daughter Dalia spoke of the need to preserve the legacy of her father, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1994 before he was shot dead in 1995 by a right-wing radical who opposed to his signing of the Oslo Accords.
"My father was killed in the battle for peace," she said. "We were left here - those who cherish his memory - to protect and preserve this memory and we must never abandon his path."
During a ceremony held at Jerusalem's Mount Herzl Cemetery on Tuesday, Infrastructure Minister Binyamin Ben-Eilezer warned that a political assassination was still possible in current political climate.
"The writing is once again on the wall, this time in bigger letters. The next political assassination is right around the corner," he said.
Source: Xinhua
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