On This Day in Jewish History: November 4, 1995

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#onthisday, 1995, Yigal Amir, a radical Israeli nationalist, assassinates Prime Minister Yitzchak Rabin following a peace rally at the formerly named, Kings of Israel Square, now named Rabin Square in his honor.

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Incited by the movement against the Oslo Accords, Amir remains in Israeli jail serving a life sentence to this day convinced that his crime was justified

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Yitzhak Rabin was an Israeli Prime Minister, Defense Minister of Israel, Ambassador to the US, and filled various roles within the IDF in his illustrious political career.

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By the time he was in his second stint as Prime Minister in 1992, Israel had lived through direct open conflict with the Palestinians in Lebanon and the aftermath of the 1st Intifada of the mid to late 80’s.

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Rabin’s government moved quickly to establish secret, direct negotiations with members of the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO), still considered a terrorist group at the time.

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By 1993, news broke that Israel and the PLO had been meeting directly in Oslo, Norway. On September 13, 1993 the first part of the agreements (Oslo I) was signed, prompting a (in)famous handshake between PM Rabin and PLO Chairman and known terrorist, Yasser Arafat on the White House lawn.

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Many issues were not finalized or fully discussed – issues such as Jerusalem’s final status, final borders, settlements, and refugees – according to Oslo I, a permanent agreement was to be set by 1996.

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Soon enough, the plan became a key issue for the opposition in Israel, the Likud party, led by Benjamin Netanyahu. A significant portion of the orthodox community in Israel was also vehemently against the plan, some even denouncing Rabin as a traitor deserving of death.

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Ultimately, #onthisday, following a peace rally in Tel Aviv, Yigal Amir approached Yitzchak Rabin and shot him three times as Rabin was leaving and entering his car.

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Oslo process was soon derailed by Rabin’s absence and remains to this day, incomplete. Also, a lack of full support from both sides and Arafat’s incitement that led to the 2nd Intifada played a role.

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✍: @jewishistoryguy

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#judaism#jewish#jewishhistory#rabin#assassination#israel#zionism#otdjh#yigalamir

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Text Source:

https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/yitzhak-rabin-assassinated

Image Sources:

https://www.i24news.tv/en/news/israel/160619-171119-rabin-assassin-yigal-amir-requests-retrial-for-attempted-murder
https://www.adl.org/imagine-yitzhak-rabin