Around 10,000 people gathered in Rabin Square in central Tel Aviv on Saturday evening for a memorial for the late Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, who was assassinated 16 years ago by a right-wing Jewish extremist. The rally was postponed by a week because of bad weather conditions last weekend. As opposed to past years, this year's rally avoided speeches by serving politicians or Rabin family members. The list of speakers included former Education Minister Yossi Sarid, Rabbi Menachem Froman, and Peace Now activist Hagit Ofran, whose home was spray-painted earlier this week with death threats. Attorney and Israeli National Left leader Eldad Yaniv told the crowd that in the wake of the recent wave of legislation that critics see as anti-democratic, as well as a spate of "price tag" attacks, that "Israel will remain democratic, and no one will be able to change that. To get there we need not wait for a responsible adult to lead us to the promised land. We must believe we are strong enough to dream of a new country."
