Memorial, funeral procession plans for Sharon are announced
(CNN) -- In death as during his life, former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon elicits emotional reactions, both laudatory and critical.
His death on Saturday at
age 85, after eight years in a coma, resurfaced old wounds, but also
praise for his strength in leadership.
In those last years of
his life, Sharon was in a state of minimal consciousness with minimal
non-verbal communication, a hospital spokesman said.
The former leader had
many ups and downs during his hospitalization, and on Saturday, "he
departed peacefully with his loving family at his side," the spokesman
said.
His coffin will be moved
Sunday to the Knesset, Israel's parliament, where citizens can come to
pay their respects through 6 p.m., the office of current Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu announced.
A state memorial ceremony
-- to be attended by, among others, U.S. Vice President Joe Biden and
former British leader Tony Blair -- will be held at the Knesset starting
at 9:30 a.m. Monday. This will be followed by a funeral procession that
includes a stop in Latrun for a special meeting of Israel Defense
Forces staff and ends with a military funeral at Sharon's ranch,
Shikmim.
In remarks on Saturday, Netanyahu remembered his predecessor as a warrior and a political leader.
"The State of Israel bows
its head on the passing of former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon,"
Netanyahu said in a statement. "Ariel Sharon played a central role in
the struggle for the security of the State of Israel over all its
years."
The same decisions that
made him a controversial figure during his lengthy tenure as a military
man and politician were back on display in the initial reactions to his
death.
These moments include
his role as defense minister during the 1982 war in Lebanon. During that
conflict, he was held indirectly responsible by an Israeli inquiry in
1983 for the massacre of hundreds of Palestinians at the Sabra and
Shatila refugee camps. He was forced to resign.
He also raised ire in
the Arab world by encouraging Israelis to build settlements on occupied
Palestinian land, but later did an about-face and pushed for the
historic withdrawal from settlements in the West Bank and Gaza, which
were turned over to Palestinian rule for the first time in nearly four
decades.
President Shimon Peres made an address eulogizing his "dear friend Arik Sharon," calling him by his well-known nickname.
"He was an outstanding
man and an exceptional commander who moved his people and loved them.
And the people loved him," Peres said.
But Hamas, the Palestinian movement that runs Gaza, paints Sharon with a darker legacy.
"We deal with the death
of Sharon as an end for the crimes he committed against the Palestinian
people," said Israr Almodallal, spokesman for Hamas in Gaza. "The
biggest crime was the Sabra and Shatila massacre in Lebanon, and we deal
with Sharon as a criminal person.
"We will not forgive Sharon any way or another," he said.
At the Baddawi refugee
camp in northern Lebanon, Sharon's death was marked with long bursts of
shooting into the air, the Lebanese state-run NNA news agency said.
President Barack Obama
offered condolences to Sharon and the Israeli people, but his statement
did not single out any milestones in the late prime minister's life for
praise besides noting that Sharon dedicated his life to Israel.
"We continue to strive
for lasting peace and security for the people of Israel, including
through our commitment to the goal of two states living side-by-side in
peace and security," Obama said.
Secretary of State John
Kerry offered a nuanced statement: "During his years in politics, it is
no secret that there were times the United States had differences with
him. But whether you agreed or disagreed with his positions -- and Arik
was always crystal clear about where he stood -- you admired the man who
was determined to ensure the security and survival of the Jewish
State."
To make Israel stronger, Sharon recognized that peace is necessary, Kerry said.
Vice President Joe Biden
will lead the U.S. delegation to Sharon's memorial service, though
details of the funeral have not been announced.
Israel's current defense minister, Moshe Ya'alon, in turn, praised Sharon's military career.
"Ariel Sharon was first
and foremost an extraordinary military commander that turned the (Israel
Defense Forces) into an army that confronts the enemy and quickly
prevails," Ya'alon said in a statement. "He displayed his military
leadership in the battlefield, both in battles against regular armies
and in the fight against terrorism."
Sharon was involved in
every Israeli war going back to 1948, and he was remembered as a fierce
fighter. He believed strongly that in order for Israel to survive, a
strong army was needed.
He had a reputation as a hawk, but he moved in a more moderate direction as prime minister.
The office of U.N.
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, released a statement focusing on Sharon's
shift toward negotiations with the Palestinians.
Sharon "will be
remembered for his political courage and determination to carry through
with the painful and historic decision to withdraw Israeli settlers and
troops from the Gaza Strip. His successor faces the difficult challenge
of realizing the aspirations of peace between the Israeli and
Palestinian people," the statement said.
French President Francois Hollande offered his condolences, also emphasizing his actions at the end of his career.
"After a long military
and political career, he made the choice to turn towards dialogue with
the Palestinians," Hollande said in a statement.
The reaction from
Russian President Vladimir Putin was less specific and, overall,
laudatory for Sharon's contributions to Israel and toward fostering
Israeli-Russian relations.
"The President of Russia
highly praised Ariel Sharon's personal qualities, his activity to
uphold the interests of Israel, noting the respect he enjoyed among his
compatriots and internationally," the Kremlin said in a statement.
Critics continued to evoke the 1982 war in Lebanon.
"It's a shame that
Sharon has gone to his grave without facing justice for his role in
Sabra and Shatilla and other abuses," said Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle
East director at Human Rights Watch. "His passing is another grim
reminder that years of virtual impunity for rights abuses have done
nothing to bring Israeli-Palestinian peace any closer."
Khaled Abu Al Noor, head of the Democratic Front, a Palestinian faction, described Sharon as "a murderer."
"He is responsible for
the massacre of many Palestinian children, women and elderly. We call on
the international community to try him under international law even
after his death."
Sharon's son, Gilad, thanked the people who cared for his father in the hospital and those who prayed for him.
"He was the one who decided when he would go," Gilad said.
Comments