November 5, 1995 TEL AVIV, Israel (CNN) -- As Israelis mourn the loss of
Yitzhak Rabin, they look to his one-time rival, Shimon Peres,
to carry forth his plans. Longtime political foes, Peres and Rabin had managed to forge
a friendship in recent years built on the shared hope for
peace in the Middle East. There was no clearer demonstration of how close the two had
become than at the peace rally Saturday only moments before
Rabin was slain. Standing before a crowd, the two men embraced. "You see?"
Rabin told reporters. "Things change not only in the world,
but also in the Middle East -- also for us." Indeed, hours later things had changed swiftly for the two
men, in ways neither could have imagined when they embraced. With Rabin's death, the Israeli Cabinet named Peres acting
prime minister. After years of battling Rabin for leadership
of Israel, Peres, 73, accepted the mantle of leadership
somewhat reluctantly. "This is very hard for me to talk (about) him as a deceased
man," Peres said following the assassination. "We have stood
together for so long. We had such a good friendship." Still, it is a position for which Peres is well-prepared. Born in Poland in 1923, Peres emigrated to Palestine with his
parents at the age of 11. While in his 20s, Peres caught the
attention of Israeli founding father David Ben-Gurion, who
would groom him for leadership. When Israel gained independence in 1948, Peres was appointed
head of the naval department in the Ministry of Defense. He
spent two years in the United States working for the Israeli
government and attending Harvard University. After his return to Israel in 1952, he held series of
government posts, including Minister of Defense, Minister of
Transportation and Communications and Minister of Finance. Between 1984 and 1986 he served as Prime Minister in a
coalition government with the right wing Likud Party. During
this time, Israel pulled its troops back from Lebanon,
normalized relations with Egypt and contained spiraling
inflation. For many years Peres and Rabin had battled for leadership of
the Labor Party. Peres' political star has risen and fallen
over the years. He has been defeated in numerous elections
and mocked for his idealism, yet he was recently voted
Israel's most popular politician. Peres has served as foreign minister since 1992, when Rabin
carried the Labor Party to victory. In 1994, Peres and Rabin shared the Nobel Peace Prize with
PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat. With the sudden change in leadership, Peres has vowed to
carry out Rabin's mission of peace. "I am sure that there is nothing else we can do as human
beings, as comrades, as friends but to continue a great road
paved by a great leader," Peres said. As acting prime minister Peres may serve until scheduled
elections in October 1996. Alternatively, he may call early
elections or attempt to form a new government. Peres remembers Rabin - part 1 - 688K AIFF or WAV sound Peres remembers Rabin - part 2 - 696K AIFF or WAV sound Copyright © 1995 Cable News Network, Inc.
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