Michael Ledeen
American historian and foreign policy analyst
Yitzhak Rabin
Israeli politician, statesman and general (1922-1995)
Yitzhak Rabin was the fifth prime minister of Israel, serving two terms in office. He was a soldier, general, and statesman who played a key role in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, winning the Nobel Peace Prize in 1994. Tragically, he was assassinated in 1995 by an extremist who opposed the Oslo Accords.
Table of Contents
Occupation
Family Info
Siblings
Rahel Rabin
Spouses
Leah Rabin
Children
Dalia Rabin-Pelossof
Yuval Rabin
About the Yitzhak Rabin
Yitzhak Rabinwas an Israeli politician, statesman and general. He was the fifth prime minister of Israel, serving two terms in office, 1974-1977, and from 1992 until his assassination in 1995.
Rabin was born in Jerusalem to Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe and was raised in a Labor Zionist household. He learned agriculture in school and excelled as a student. He led a 27-year career as a soldier and ultimately attained the rank of Rav Aluf, the most senior rank in the Israeli Defense Force (often translated as lieutenant general). As a teenager he joined the Palmach, the commando force of the Yishuv. He eventually rose through its ranks to become its chief of operations during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. He joined the newly formed Israel Defense Forces in late 1948 and continued to rise as a promising officer. He helped shape the training doctrine of the IDF in the early 1950s, and led the IDF’s Operations Directorate from 1959 to 1963. He was appointed chief of the general staff in 1964 and oversaw Israel’s victory in the 1967 Six-Day War.
Rabin served as Israel’s ambassador to the United States from 1968 to 1973, during a period of deepening U.S.-Israel ties. He was appointed Prime Minister of Israel in 1974 after the resignation of Golda Meir. In his first term, Rabin signed the Sinai Interim Agreement and ordered the Entebbe raid. He resigned in 1977 in the wake of a financial scandal. Rabin was Israel’s minister of defense for much of the 1980s, including during the outbreak of the First Intifada.
In 1992, Rabin was re-elected as prime minister on a platform embracing the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. He signed several historic agreements with the Palestinian leadership as part of the Oslo Accords. In 1994, Rabin won the Nobel Peace Prize together with long-time political rival Shimon Peres and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat. Rabin also signed a peace treaty with Jordan in 1994. In November 1995, he was assassinated by Yigal Amir, an extremist who opposed the terms of the Oslo Accords. Amir was convicted of Rabin’s murder and sentenced to life imprisonment. Rabin was the first native-born prime minister of Israel, the only prime minister to be assassinated, and the second to die in office after Levi Eshkol. Rabin has become a symbol of the Israeli-Palestinian peace process.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yitzhak Rabin was born on March 1, 1922 and died on November 4, 1995.
Yitzhak Rabin served as the fifth prime minister of Israel, holding office from 1974-1977 and 1992 until his assassination in 1995.
Yitzhak Rabin had a 27-year career as a soldier, rising to the rank of Rav Aluf (lieutenant general) in the Israeli Defense Force. He was a member of the Palmach commando force and played a key role in the 1948 Arab-Israeli War.
As prime minister, Yitzhak Rabin signed the Sinai Interim Agreement and ordered the Entebbe raid. He was also instrumental in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, signing the historic Oslo Accords, for which he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1994.
Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated in 1995 by Yigal Amir, an extremist who opposed the terms of the Oslo Accords. Amir was convicted of Rabin’s murder and sentenced to life imprisonment.
Yitzhak Rabin is remembered as a symbol of the Israeli-Palestinian peace process and the first native-born prime minister of Israel. He was the only prime minister to be assassinated while in office.
Yitzhak Rabin was born in Jerusalem to Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe and was raised in a Labor Zionist household. He learned agriculture in school and excelled as a student.
22 Quotes by Yitzhak Rabin
- 1.
Israel is no longer a people that dwells alone, and has to join the global journey toward peace, reconciliation and international cooperation.
Yitzhak RabinIsraeli politician, statesman and general (1922-1995)
- 2.
Israel has an important principle: It is only Israel that is responsible for our security.
Yitzhak RabinIsraeli politician, statesman and general (1922-1995)
- 3.
You don’t make peace with friends. You make it with very unsavory enemies.
Yitzhak RabinIsraeli politician, statesman and general (1922-1995)
- 4.
Only the change on the international scene, the crisis in the gulf, and the strong, firm position of the United States against aggression between two Arab countries created realities that led to the Madrid Peace Conference.
Yitzhak RabinIsraeli politician, statesman and general (1922-1995)
- 5.
A diplomatic peace is not yet the real peace. It is an essential step in the peace process leading towards a real peace.
Yitzhak RabinIsraeli politician, statesman and general (1922-1995)
- 6.
I believe that in the long run, separation between Israel and the Palestinians is the best solution for resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Yitzhak RabinIsraeli politician, statesman and general (1922-1995)
- 7.
I believe however that peace is attainable regardless of the Arabs mentality, society or government.
Yitzhak RabinIsraeli politician, statesman and general (1922-1995)
- 8.
The struggle to get weapons is continuous, but the United States will aid us, if it finds Israel displaying a willingness for peace.
Yitzhak RabinIsraeli politician, statesman and general (1922-1995)
- 9.
Practically the only way to dry the swamp of radical Islam is through economic development and an improved standard of living.
Yitzhak RabinIsraeli politician, statesman and general (1922-1995)
- 10.
We must think differently, look at things in a different way. Peace requires a world of new concepts, new definitions.
Yitzhak RabinIsraeli politician, statesman and general (1922-1995)
- 11.
I would like Israel to be a Jewish state, and therefore not to annex over 2 million Palestinians who live in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip to Israel, which will make Israel a bi-national state.
Yitzhak RabinIsraeli politician, statesman and general (1922-1995)
- 12.
I believe that it is my responsibility as the prime minister of Israel to do whatever can be done to exploit the unique opportunities that lie ahead of us to move towards peace. Not everything can be done by one act.
Yitzhak RabinIsraeli politician, statesman and general (1922-1995)
- 13.
No Arab ruler will consider the peace process seriously so long as he is able to toy with the idea of achieving more by the way of violence.
Yitzhak RabinIsraeli politician, statesman and general (1922-1995)
- 14.
We do not celebrate the death of our enemies.
Yitzhak RabinIsraeli politician, statesman and general (1922-1995)
- 15.
I am 73 years old. I was born in Jerusalem. I’m the first prime minister of Israel to be born here. I am the only former general to become a prime minister.
Yitzhak RabinIsraeli politician, statesman and general (1922-1995)
- 16.
The world is no longer against us.
Yitzhak RabinIsraeli politician, statesman and general (1922-1995)
- 17.
Israel’s willingness to cooperate closely with the U.S. in protecting American interests in the region altered her image in the eyes of many officials in Washington.
Yitzhak RabinIsraeli politician, statesman and general (1922-1995)
- 18.
I enter negotiations with Chairman Arafat, the leader of the PLO, the representative of the Palestinian people, with the purpose to have coexistence between our two entities, Israel as a Jewish state and Palestinian state, entity, next to us, living in peace.
Yitzhak RabinIsraeli politician, statesman and general (1922-1995)
- 19.
Jerusalem is united, will never be divided again.
Yitzhak RabinIsraeli politician, statesman and general (1922-1995)
- 20.
In the midst of fighting there is no place for public debate.
Yitzhak RabinIsraeli politician, statesman and general (1922-1995)
- 21.
Give peace a chance.
Yitzhak RabinIsraeli politician, statesman and general (1922-1995)
- 22.
It is not worth the paper it is written on unless it is backed by the kind of force that will make the other side consider the penalties too heavy to break the agreement.
Yitzhak RabinIsraeli politician, statesman and general (1922-1995)