Ex-Senior Israeli Official Holds Netanyahu Responsible for Rabin’s Assassination

PM Naftali Bennett delivers a speech at the memorial ceremony for Yitzhak Rabin in Jerusalem on Monday, October 18, 2021. (Reuters)
PM Naftali Bennett delivers a speech at the memorial ceremony for Yitzhak Rabin in Jerusalem on Monday, October 18, 2021. (Reuters)
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Ex-Senior Israeli Official Holds Netanyahu Responsible for Rabin’s Assassination

PM Naftali Bennett delivers a speech at the memorial ceremony for Yitzhak Rabin in Jerusalem on Monday, October 18, 2021. (Reuters)
PM Naftali Bennett delivers a speech at the memorial ceremony for Yitzhak Rabin in Jerusalem on Monday, October 18, 2021. (Reuters)

A former senior Israeli government official has held ex-Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responsible for the assassination of his predecessor Yitzhak Rabin.

The official investigation committee formed after the assassination addressed negligence in Rabin’s security but did not investigate what paved the way for this crime, the official stressed.

Shimon Sheves, former general director and chief of staff during Rabin's time in office, said Israel’s premiers still face the risk of being assassinated.

“If those who created the atmosphere for the assassination are not held accountable, then the next target is inevitable.” He underscored incitement against the current PM, Naftali Bennett, and the alternative PM, Yair Lapid, that could most probably lead to their assassination.

“Netanyahu refused to accuse Rabin of treason, but he did nothing to stop the bloody incitement,” Sheves said, in response to a question about the reason for accusing Netanyahu of being responsible for the assassination, knowing that he repeatedly told his audience that Rabin should not be accused of treason.

Netanyahu also participated in festivals and demonstrations where slogans accusing Rabin of treason were raised.

Protesters raised pictures showing Rabin putting Yasser Arafat’s “keffiyeh” and wearing the uniform of an officer in Germany’s Nazi because he signed the Oslo Accords, Sheves explained, accusing Netanyahu of listening willingly to the campaigns of incitement against Rabin.

He also blamed Rabin’s companion and his deputy at the time, Shimon Peres, who became interim prime minister, for covering up the incitement issue. According to Sheves, Peres was afraid of expanding the scope of the investigation and was occupied by the early elections held then.

Therefore, Rabin’s right was lost, along with Israel’s opportunity to hold accountable those responsible for spreading an atmosphere of division and hatred that paved the way for the assassination, he noted.

Memorial events were held Monday in Israel to mark 26 years since Rabin’s assassination.

Bennett and other top Israeli officials attended the official ceremony at Jerusalem’s Mount Herzl national cemetery, except for Netanyahu.

Rabin’s family has accused Netanyahu of playing a part in public incitement against Rabin before his death. Netanyahu has regularly rejected the allegations.

Rabin was assassinated at a peace rally in Tel Aviv’s Kings Square in 1995. He was reportedly shot in the arm and back by the extremist far-right activist Yigal Amir, who said he had no regrets.



Iran Says 5 Inmates at Evin Prison Were Killed in Israel's Airstrike on Tehran

Evin Prison (File photo: Reuters)
Evin Prison (File photo: Reuters)
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Iran Says 5 Inmates at Evin Prison Were Killed in Israel's Airstrike on Tehran

Evin Prison (File photo: Reuters)
Evin Prison (File photo: Reuters)

An Israeli airstrike on Iran's capital last month killed five inmates at Evin prison and resulted in the escape of several others, Iranian media reported Saturday.

The semi-official ILNA news agency and other Iranian media quoted a spokesman for Iran’s judiciary that the five inmates killed in the June 23 strike had been convicted on financial offences. The spokesman didn't name the victims or give any further details.

The judiciary’s own news website, Mizanonline quoted spokesman Asghar Jahangir as saying only that “small number" of inmates were killed. He added that an “insignificant number of inmates” had also escaped and that authorities would soon bring them back into custody, AFP reported.

Jahangir said no one serving time at Evin prison for working with Israel's spy agency Mossad was injured in the attack.

Iranian authorities last month put the death toll from the airstrike at 71. But Iranian media later raised that number to 80 including staff, soldiers, inmates and visiting family members.

It's unclear why Israel targeted the prison. The Israeli Defense Ministry had said on the day of the airstrikes that 50 aircraft dropped 100 munitions on military targets “based on high-quality and accurate intelligence from the Intelligence Branch.”

The New York-based Center for Human Rights had criticized Israel for striking the prison - seen as a symbol of repression of any opposition - saying it violated the principle of distinction between civilian and military targets.

The 12-day air war left more than 1,060 dead in Iran and 28 dead in Israel.