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| Shimon Peres |
Peres has shaped the history of Israel and the future of the Middle East. Described as a man with "an incisive sense of history, a creative imagination, a thirst for culture, and a far-sighted vision," he has held every major cabinet position in Israel.
As minister of the defense, he engineered the legendary Entebbe rescue and was a key architect of the historic Oslo Peace Accords. He served as Israel's Prime Minister during three crucial periods in Israel history: 1977 when the Labor Party was in opposition; 1984 through 1986 under the National Unity Government; and 1995 through 1996 when he was acting Prime Minister after Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated.
In the Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations of April 1998, Peres came out in support of the creation of a Palestinian state by May 1999. He had been Rabin's partner in the peace accord. He met with Yasar Arafat privately and spoke strongly for a mutual solution, "My view is that the only solution possible is to have two different states. For Israel to remain Jewish, we need a Palestinian state as well, otherwise we will have a binational state or a binational tragedy." (New York Times, April 27, 1998)
The President's Office is underwriting faculty and staff tickets. Advance tickets are available from the box office for $10.
KM