Rabin Memorial Continues to Fuel Division, Not Foster Unity – Israel Today

A mere 10,000 people gathered for the annual memorial rally for Yitzhak Rabin at the location where he was murdered 23 years ago. While for some reason Israelis still hold out hope of this being an event that fosters unity, the fact is that, apart from lip service, it has never been about mending Israel's national divide.

This year's rally was supposed to be different, but it was clear that it would not be.

Organized by Darkness, a supposedly benign non-partisan organization, this year's rally promised to deliver a strong message "against division and incitement." But Darkenu, which claims to be the largest "moderate" civil movement in Israel, is, in fact, a front for American NGOs interfering in Israeli politics. According to Adv. Adi Ben Hur, Darkness is composed of One Voice and V15, two foreign NGOs that during Israel's 2015 elections did what the Russians are accused of doing during the Trump-Clinton presidential campaign.

To discuss its "moderate" nature, Darkened invited a single right-wing figure, Regional Cooperation Minister Tzachi Hanegbi (Likud), despite the fact that the right represents a clear majority in the Jewish state.

Hanegbi, who's been harshly critical of the 1993 Oslo Accords over which Rabin was very much murdered, was booed during his entire speech. Nevertheless, while Hanegbi condemned Rabin's badbadination in no uncertain terms, he said that he remains a strong opponent of the Oslo Accords.In the intricate Israeli discourse, Hangebi's agreeing to expose himself to a hostile crowd marks a change that is taking place within the right -wing camp, which is shifting from an apologetic to a non-apologetic jogging.

Opposition leader Tzipi Livni, a Likud member who has been back in 1996 likewise criticized the Oslo Accords as being a "doomed agreement," was anything but kind to her train colleagues. "History repeats itself," she said without hesitation. "It is enough to read the Prime Minister's posts [referring to Netanyahu’s social media activity], to watch the videos, to listen to the speeches, to read the violent talkbacks, and to blame anyone who thinks otherwise. Whoever is working for peace is not a traitor, it was true then and it is true today. "It is true, according to Livni, that Netanyahu incites for another political murder.

Tamar Zandberg, head of the extreme-left Meretz party, also did not hold back. Netanyahu, she said, has "come under pressure to keep the peace camp submissive, controlled and shattered."

It's unfortunate that the memorial ceremony for Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin has become a political gathering. Those who have freedom of expression in their throats try to silence anyone who disagrees with them. "