‘Iron man’ of Israel mourned
TRIBUTES have poured in for former Israeli prime minister Yitzhak Shamir, who died last Saturday at the age of 96 after a long battle with Alzheimer’s disease.
TRIBUTES have poured in for former Israeli prime minister Yitzhak Shamir, who died last Saturday at the age of 96 after a long battle with Alzheimer’s disease.
Israel’s second longest-serving prime minister after David Ben-Gurion, Shamir was known for his unwavering conviction, hardline policies and uncompromising stance on peace negotiations.
But he was also known as the prime minister who oversaw the integration of a million Soviet and thousands of Ethiopian immigrants into Israel, and in 1991 became the first Israeli leader to sit with Palestinian, Syrian, Jordanian and Lebanese representatives at the Madrid Peace Conference.
In paying tribute, current Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Shamir “personified loyalty to the Land of Israel and the eternal values of the Jewish people”.
“Yitzhak Shamir belonged to the generation of giants that established the State of Israel and fought for the freedom of the Jewish people in its Land,” he said.
Closer to home, Zionist Federation of Australia president Philip Chester said the organisation joined with the State of Israel in mourning its former leader. “Yitzhak Shamir was a leader with an uncompromising commitment to his country and people,” he said. “From his early days as a fighter in the Lehi [Stern Group] to his principled term as prime minister, during which he led Israel in peace negotiations in Madrid, Shamir worked for the independence, security and future of the state.”
Executive Council of Australian Jewry president Danny Lamm also paid tribute. “Yitzhak Shamir was one of the giants of the founding generation of the State of Israel,” he said.
“Tough and uncompromising, even his detractors respected his unwavering adherence to his principles.
““If ever there was an iron man in the leadership of Israel, he was that man – a hero of Israel.”
GARETH NARUNSKY
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