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We did not think that [Egyptian President] Nasser wanted war. The two divisions he sent to Sinai on May 14 would not have been sufficient to launch an offensive against Israel. He knew it and we knew it.

Yitzhak Rabin

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Yitzhak Rabin
Age: 73 †
Born: 1922
Born: March 1
Died: 1995
Died: November 4
Diplomat
Former Prime Minister Of Israel
Military Officer
Politician
Jerusalem
Middle East
Itzhak Rabin
Itshak Rabin
President
Egyptian
War
Launch
Two
Offensive
May
Division
Wanted
Sent
Would
Sufficient
Nasser
Think
Israel
Sinai
Thinking
Knew
Divisions

More quotes by Yitzhak Rabin

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For me, Jerusalem was united, will be under Israel sovereignty, will be the capital of Israel and the heart of the Jewish people.
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I considered the prevention of war as the test of our security policy in addition to being able to rapidly and forcefully end any war forced upon us.
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We do not celebrate the death of our enemies.
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Israel's willingness to cooperate closely with the U.S. in protecting American interests in the region altered her image in the eyes of many officials in Washington.
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We can continue to fight. We can continue to kill - and continue to be killed. But we can also try to put a stop to this never-ending cycle of blood. We can also give peace a chance.
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There is no way of finding the middle ground, even with the best intentions of the world. Our most sensible policy is to stall.
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There are two phases of the redeployment of the Israeli forces in the West Bank: One, to allow elections. Second, after the elections, to help further redeployment.
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Peace is not made with friends. Peace is made with enemies.
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The negotiations must address all aspects, both peace and withdrawal.
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I enter negotiations with Chairman Arafat, the leader of the PLO, the representative of the Palestinian people, with the purpose to have coexistence between our two entities, Israel as a Jewish state and Palestinian state, entity, next to us, living in peace.
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I believe that it is my responsibility as the prime minister of Israel to do whatever can be done to exploit the unique opportunities that lie ahead of us to move towards peace. Not everything can be done by one act.
Yitzhak Rabin
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I would like Israel to be a Jewish state, and therefore not to annex over 2 million Palestinians who live in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip to Israel, which will make Israel a bi-national state.
Yitzhak Rabin
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Practically the only way to dry the swamp of radical Islam is through economic development and an improved standard of living.
Yitzhak Rabin
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Israel is no longer a people that dwells alone, and has to join the global journey toward peace, reconciliation and international cooperation.
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[Israel will] create in the course of the next 10 or 20 years conditions which would attract natural and voluntary migration of the refugees from the Gaza Strip and the west Bank to Jordan. To achieve this we have to come to agreement with King Hussein and not with Yasser Arafat.
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Syria doesn't want to talk with us on a bilateral basis, only under the auspices of the United States.
Yitzhak Rabin
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Vis a vis the Golan Heights, the present government of Israel, under my leadership, is the first government that is ready to speak about a withdrawal.
Yitzhak Rabin
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We will not rest until we reach a permanent agreement [with the Palestinians] that would secure a safe future for our children and that would provide us with renewed hope to live in a region where people lead a life of co-operation and not, God forbid, where blood is shed.
Yitzhak Rabin
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Jerusalem is united, will never be divided again.
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The Government chose to give peace a chance. The Government chose to do something to achieve it.
Yitzhak Rabin