September 27, 2016 | No Comments
President Barack Obama joined a chorus of politicians in mourning the passing of former Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres at 93 on Tuesday, calling him “the essence of Israel itself.”
“I will always be grateful that I was able to call Shimon my friend,” the president said in a statement released Tuesday night. “Shimon was the essence of Israel itself — the courage of Israel’s fight for independence, the optimism he shared with his wife Sonya as they helped make the desert bloom, and the perseverance that led him to serve his nation in virtually every position in government across the entire life of the State of Israel.”
Peres, a 1994 Nobel Peace Prize winner, worked as a public servant for the entire history of the state of Israel. His joint attempt to bridge together peace in the Middle East between Israel and Palestinians was the biggest breakthrough in the region since the Israel-Egypt accords of 1978, offering hope for future remedies.
“As Americans, we are in his debt because, having worked with every U.S. president since John F. Kennedy, no one did more over so many years as Shimon Peres to build the alliance between our two countries—an unbreakable alliance that today is closer and stronger than it has ever been,” the president added. “A light has gone out, but the hope he gave us will burn forever.”
In a joint statement, former President Bill Clinton and Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton said they had “lost a true and treasured friend.”
“With the passing of Shimon Peres, Israel has lost a leader who championed its security, prosperity, and limitless possibilities from its birth to his last day on earth,” the Clintons wrote. “The Middle East has lost a fervent advocate for peace and reconciliation and for a future where all the children of Abraham build a better tomorrow together.”
House Majority Leader Paul Ryan hailed Peres’ legacy in seeking to ushure in peace in the Middle East, writing in a statement that he “was a gift to the country he helped establish and lead, and a persistent voice for the cause of peace.”
“President Peres’ countless contributions to the world earned him the Nobel Peace Prize, Congressional Gold Medal, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom,” Ryan wrote in a statement. “While we join the State of Israel and people around the globe in mourning his death, we also give thanks for his incredible life.”
In a statement House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi called Peres “one of the world’s greatest statesmen and peacemakers.”
“President Shimon Peres was a universally respected leader, a courageous visionary, and a true hero who leaves a towering legacy in service of justice and peace,” she wrote “The American people stand together with Israel in honoring the memory of this extraordinary man.”
Peres, who suffered a stroke Sept. 13, passed away Tuesday following “severe organ failure,” according to the Jerusalem Post.