A recent rally in Tel Aviv, marking the 30th anniversary of Yitzhak Rabin’s assassination, drew around 50,000 attendees. While the turnout itself wasn’t extraordinary, what truly captivated observers was the unexpected resurgence of a word rarely heard in Israeli political discourse: ‘peace.’ Chants of ‘Yes to peace, no to violence!’ filled Rabin Square, echoing sentiments from opposition leaders. Yair Lapid, head of the centrist Yesh Atid party, emphasized, ‘Pursuing peace is a Jewish act,’ while former general Yair Golan of the left-wing Democrats party asserted, Rabin ‘knew that peace is not weakness, but strength and power.’
The assassination of Rabin on November 4, 1995, violently halted the Oslo peace process, subsequently turning ‘peace’ into a controversial term within Israel’s increasingly right-leaning political landscape. It became associated with naïveté, or worse, with left-wing ideology.
However, a new chapter in the peace process is now unfolding. A resolute Trump administration, backed by its allies in the Muslim world, is striving to expand a fragile cease-fire between Israel and Hamas into a more comprehensive resolution. Their ambitious agenda includes the demilitarization and reconstruction of the Gaza Strip, starting with its eastern half, which is under Israeli control. There are also hopes to extend the Abraham Accords, which normalized relations between Israel and several Arab states, to include nations like Saudi Arabia, Syria, or Lebanon, potentially even rekindling aspirations for a Palestinian state.
But before these grand visions can materialize, a critical step remains: Hamas must return all the bodies of Israel’s former captives. On Monday morning, Israel confirmed the recovery of three more remains: Col. Assaf Hamami, Sgt. Oz Daniel, and Capt. Omer Neutra, an Israeli-American citizen. The bodies of eight others are still believed to be in Gaza.
This period is marked by both immense promise and significant danger. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu only reluctantly agreed to the cease-fire with Hamas under pressure. Many within his coalition still favor a return to full-scale conflict to achieve ‘total victory,’ fearing that Hamas might otherwise survive, regroup, rearm, and once again pose a military threat to Israel. As ordinary Israelis express, the nation stands at a critical juncture, with issues extending beyond Gaza. A notable number of Israelis have emigrated over the past year, and many believe the upcoming election will be a watershed moment, determining the country’s future direction and whether its citizens choose to stay or depart. (Image: A destroyed home in Khan Younis, Gaza, on Sunday. A determined Trump administration and its allies in the Muslim world seek to broaden a tenuous cease-fire between Israel and Hamas.)
At the heart of this tension lies a fractured social contract in Israel. The relationship between the ultra-Orthodox community, hundreds of thousands of whom recently demonstrated in Jerusalem to demand continued exemption from military service, and the tens of thousands of reservists who have endured multiple tours of duty in Gaza, is severely strained. (Image: Hundreds of thousands of ultra-Orthodox Israelis gathered in Jerusalem last week to demand the extension of their decades-old exemption from military service.)
Much will depend on Prime Minister Netanyahu’s decisions in the coming months: the compromises he is compelled to make, his ultimate priorities, and the legacy he wishes to forge at 76. Equally crucial will be how his political opponents position themselves to a weary but skeptical Israeli electorate, disillusioned by the prospects of peace.
The speeches delivered Saturday night frequently highlighted Rabin’s past as a warrior before he embraced peace with the Palestinians. Speakers also acknowledged the unsettling parallels between the current political climate in Israel and the highly charged atmosphere that preceded Rabin’s assassination. Golan reflected on how Rabin’s murder still resonates today, particularly ‘every time the government incites against its citizens, every time patriots are called traitors, every time protesters exercising their civic responsibility are beaten.’
Lapid further argued that the right-wing and religious factions within the ruling coalition are, much like Rabin’s detractors, twisting the true meaning of Jewishness, transforming it into a vehicle for violence. ‘The violent racism of Itamar Ben-Gvir is not Judaism,’ he stated, referencing Netanyahu’s national security minister. He added, ‘Anyone who suggests dropping an atomic bomb on Gaza does not represent Judaism,’ criticizing another ultranationalist minister’s alarming suggestion. Lapid concluded, ‘Settler violence is not Judaism. Judaism does not belong to the extremists, nor to the corrupt, nor to the draft dodgers.’