Obama, Clintons, Pope to Attend Shimon Peres’ Funeral

September 28, 2016

3 min read

Israel’s Foreign Ministry on Wednesday issued a statement saying US President Barack Obama will attend the state funeral of Israel’s ninth president Shimon Peres on Friday. Peres, considered the last living Founding Father of Israel, passed away two weeks after suffering a major stroke.

Pope Francis (Photo: Casa Rosada, Wiki Commons)
Pope Francis (Casa Rosada, Wiki Commons)

Dozens of major world leaders will arrive in Jerusalem on Friday for the funeral. The list includes former US President Bill Clinton and his wife, Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, US Secretary of State John Kerry, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon, Joe Biden, Pope Francis, Prince Charles, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President François Hollande, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, German President Joachim Gauck, Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto, Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, Beatrix, Queen Mother of the Netherlands, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, President of Togo Faure Gnassingbé, and President of Romania Klaus Iohannis.

The foreign ministry has activated an emergency protocol to consolidate information regarding the arriving dignitaries and caring for their needs. The statement notes that ministry personnel will be coordinating the funeral operation with Ben-Gurion International Airport, government ministries and police.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife Sara expressed deep personal sorrow over the passing of the former President of the State of Israel, Shimon Peres. The Prime Minister will issue a special statement later this morning and convene the Cabinet in a special session.

In his statement about the passing of President Peres, President Obama wrote: “There are few people who we share this world with who change the course of human history, not just through their role in human events, but because they expand our moral imagination and force us to expect more of ourselves. My friend Shimon was one of those people.

“Shimon Peres once said that, ‘I learned that public service is a privilege that must be based on moral foundations.’ Tonight, Michelle and I join people across Israel, the United States and around the world in honoring the extraordinary life of our dear friend Shimon Peres—a Founding Father of the State of Israel and a statesman whose commitment to Israel’s security and pursuit of peace was rooted in his own unshakeable moral foundation and unflagging optimism.”

Concluded Obama, “A light has gone out, but the hope he gave us will burn forever. For the gift of his friendship and the example of his leadership, todah rabah, Shimon.”

Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau wrote that Peres was “above all a man of peace. My deepest condolences to his loved ones and to the people of Israel on his passing.”

“In former President Shimon Peres, we lost a key world leader and a friend of India. I am pained by his demise. Our condolences to the people of Israel,” said Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Former US President George W. Bush also issued a statement, saying that “it was by his innate humanity, his decency, that Shimon inspired the world over and helped pave a path to peace.”

Education Minister Naftali Bennett directed Israel’s education system to dedicate Wednesday to the life and achievements of Shimon Peres, and called on Jewish communities and schools to do the same, “so the future generation for whom he fought will know who he was and be inspired by him.”

With additional reporting by Breaking Israel News Staff

Share this article

Donate today to support Israel’s needy

$10

$25

$50

$100

$250

CUSTOM AMOUNT

Subscribe

Prophecy from the Bible is revealing itself as we speak. Israel365 News is the only media outlet reporting on it.

Sign up to our free daily newsletter today to get all the most important stories directly to your inbox. See how the latest updates in Jerusalem and the world are connected to the prophecies we read in the Bible. .