Yitzhak Rabin Knocking on door to peace Yitzhak Rabin was born in Jerusalem in 1922, As a young man, he decided to study at the Kadoorie Agricultural College where he graduated with distinction. Soon, he began a military career, at the beginning of World War II, when he joined the "Palmach", an elite unit of the Haganah. During the War of Independence (1948-1949), Rabin commanded the Harel Brigade, which was deployed on the Jerusalem front. For the next 20 years, he served with the IDF as O.C. Northern Command (1956-1959); as Chief of Operations and Deputy Chief of Staff (1959-1964) and as Chief of Staff (1964-1968), commanding the IDF during the Six-Day War. On January 1, 1968, he retired from military service and began one in diplomacy. He was appointed Israel’s ambassador to the United States. During his ambassadorship in Washington, his main objectives were to promote and consolidate the ties between the United States and Israel.

In the spring of 1973, Rabin returned to Israel and became politically active in his native country. He ran on the platform of the Labour Party and was elected Member of the Knesset (Israel’s Parliament) in December 1973. He received a promotion when Golda Meir formed her government in April 1974, and appointed Rabin Minister of Labour.

It was only a couple of months after, on June 2, 1974, that the Knesset expressed confidence in the popular politician, and approved of a new government headed by now Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin.

During Rabin's premiership, the government placed special emphasis on domestic problems such as the economy, solving social problems and reinforcing the IDF.

As for foreign relations, Rabin, with the help of American mediation, signed a series of disengagement agreements with Egypt and Syria (1974), followed by an interim agreement with Egypt in 1975. Later in 1975, the first Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the governments of Israel and the United States.

In June 1976, during an infamous hijacking of an Air France carrier, Rabin ordered "Operation Entebbe", which successfully liberated the passengers.

Following the May 1977 elections, the Labour Party lost and Rabin served as a Member of the opposition in the Knesset. He was also active in the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee.

In September 1984 came the formation of the National Unity Government (1984-1990), where Rabin served as Minister of Defense. In January 1985, he presented the proposal for the withdrawal of IDF forces from Lebanon and the establishment of a security zone to guarantee peace to the settlements along Israel's northern border.

In the 90s, Yitzhak Rabin was elected chairman of the Israel Labour Party in its first nationwide primaries. The popular figure led his party to victory in the June 1992 Knesset elections.

In July 1992, Rabin formed Israel's 25th government and became its 11th Prime Minister and Minister of Defense, and acting Minister of Religious Affairs and Labour and Social Affairs.

Rabin's biographical book, "Service Notebook", was published in 1979 and was translated into English and French.

His book on Lebanon, written after Operation "Peace for Galilee", was published in 1983.
From Les Prix Nobel 1994.
Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated in November 4, 1995.

Yitzhak Rabin

Man is not made of steel
He has a heart and soul
He cries and laughs
He loves and hurts
He charges.
He is wounded and cries out
He is flesh and blood.

Speaking at a rally of wounded tank crews at Latrun in 1994

Yitzhak Rabin's Last Speech

November 4, 1995
Tel Aviv City Hall Plaza

Permit me to say that I am deeply moved.
I wish to thank each and every one of you, who have come here today to take a stand against violence and for peace. This government, which I am privileged to head, together with my friend Shimon Peres, decided to give peace a chance -- a peace that will solve most of Israel's problems.
I was a military man for 27 years. I fought as long as there was no chance for peace. I believe that there is now a chance for peace, a great chance. We must take advantage of it for the sake of those standing here, and for those who are not here -- and they are many.
I have always believed that the majority of the people want peace and are ready to take risks for peace. In coming here today, you demonstrate, together with many others who did not come, that the people truly desire peace and oppose violence.
Violence erodes the basis of Israeli democracy. It must be condemned and isolated.
This is not the way of the State of Israel. In a democracy there can be differences, but the final decision will be taken in democratic elections, as the 1992 elections which gave us the mandate to do what we are doing, and to continue on this course.
I want to say that I am proud of the fact that representatives of the countries with whom we are living in peace are present with us here, and will continue to be here: Egypt, Jordan, and Morocco, which opened the road to peace for us. I want to thank the President of Egypt, the King of Jordan, and the King of Morocco, represented here today, for their partnership with us in our march towards peace.
But, more than anything, in the more than three years of this Government's existence, the Israeli people has proven that it is possible to make peace, that peace opens the door to a better economy and society; that peace is not just a prayer.
Peace is first of all in our prayers, but it is also the aspiration of the Jewish people, a genuine aspiration for peace.
There are enemies of peace who are trying to hurt us, in order to torpedo the peace process.
I want to say bluntly, that we have found a partner for peace among the Palestinians as well: the PLO, which was an enemy, and has ceased to engage in terrorism. Without partners for peace, there can be no peace.
We will demand that they do their part for peace, just as we will do our part for peace, in order to solve the most complicated, prolonged, and emotionally charged aspect of the Israeli-Arab conflict: the Palestinian- Israeli conflict.
This is a course which is fraught with difficulties and pain. For Israel, there is no path that is without pain.
But the path of peace is preferable to the path of war.
I say this to you as one who was a military man, someone who is today Minister of Defense and sees the pain of the families of the IDF soldiers. For them, for our children, in my case for our grandchildren, I want this Government to exhaust every opening, every possibility, to promote and achieve a comprehensive peace. Even with Syria, it will be possible to make peace.
This rally must send a message to the Israeli people, to the Jewish people around the world, to the many people in the Arab world, and indeed to the entire world, that the Israeli people want peace, support peace.
For this, I thank you.