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Chapter 1
9the most secular Israeli: Dennis Ross, The Missing Peace: The Inside Story of the Fight for Middle East Peace (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2004), 91.
9“Some Abu Ali”: Aliza Wallach, interview with the author, June 17, 2013.
11“We can blame Peres”: Eitan Haber, interview with the author, August 5, 2013.
14two old sumo wrestlers: Uri Dromi, interview with the author, May 1, 2013.
14“That man ruined my life”: Nahum Barnea, interview with author, December 3, 2013.
16yellow stains on the insides: as described by Yehuda Hiss, Israel’s chief pathologist, in Rabin’s pathology report.
17“He called me in the evening”: Rabin-Peres: Everything Is Personal, directed by Arik Henig, Israel, 2007, Dragoman Films.
17The “quintet,” as Peres referred: David Landau, interview with the author, June 23, 2013.
18“I told him, if you go”: Shimon Peres, interview with the author, February 15, 2012.
21On the day of the ceremony: Amos Eiran, interview with the author, July 2, 2013.
22“We’re only at the beginning”: Dahlia Yairi, interview with the author, November 3, 2013.
23“You don’t invite the midwife”: Ron Pundak, interview with the author, September 30, 2013.
25“All right. All right”: Bill Clinton, My Life (New York: Knopf Publishing Group, 2004), Kindle edition, chapter 35.
26Rabin a regimented old soldier: Shimon Sheves, interview with the author, June 1, 2013.
26“was sort of sizing me up”: Bill Clinton, speech to the AIPAC Policy Conference, May 1995.
27thwart the traditional Arab embrace: Clinton, My Life, chapter 35.
27“Andrews, Bandar”: Martin Indyk, Innocent Abroad: An Intimate Account of American Peace Diplomacy in the Middle East (New York: Simon & Schuster, 2009), 71.
30“Your turn now”: A Prime Minister’s Schedule, directed by Shahar Segal, Israel, 1998.
31become an apartheid regime: Clinton, My Life, chapter 35.
31Israeli intelligence agencies had intercepted: Shimon Sheves, interview with the author, June 1, 2013.
31“I can tell you that no doubt”: Eitan Haber, interview with the author, February 18, 2013.
31“If Golda was alive”: Mahmoud Abbas, Through Secret Channels (London: Garnet Publishing, 1995), 214.
Chapter 2
35he scored 144: According to a psychological assessment of Amir ordered by the court and conducted by Dr. Gabriel Weil in February 1996.
37“He feels a sense of guilt”: Ibid.
37A student several grades ahead: Geulah Amir, interview with the author, August 8, 2013.
38“Yigal was the enforcer”: John Kifner, “The Making of Rabin’s Killer,” New York Times, November 18, 1995.
38Most of the time, the Palestinians would pull: Nili Korman, witness statement, November 1995.
39came to regard him as exceptionally smart: Avinoam Ezer, interview with the author, August 2013.
39“must learn to fathom God’s Will”: Michael Karpin and Ina Friedman, Murder in the Name of God: The Plot to Kill Yitzhak Rabin (London: Granta Books, 1998), 23.
40“Only through prayer and Torah study”: Shlomo Amir, witness statement, November 1995.
40He hadn’t bothered cashing out: Hagai Amir, court records, 1995–1996.
40who liked taking apart old radios: Geulah Amir, interview with the author, August 8, 2013.
43After their service, he helped: Israel Shirion, witness statement, November 1995.
43On recurring visits: Hagai Amir, court records, 1995–1996.
44Amir outlined to Hagai: Hagai Amir, interview with the author, July 14, 2013.
45a link in a chain of Jewish rebellion: Yigal Amir, court records, 1995–1996.
45He and Hagai had both read The Revolt: Hagai Amir, interview with the author, July 14, 2013.
47“annihilation of Amalek”: Karen Armstrong, The Battle for God (New York: Ballantine Books, 2001), 346.
47“evil in the heart of Bar-Ilan”: “Murder Taints ‘Tolerant’ Campus,” Times Higher Education, November 27, 1995, http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/99018.article.
48He agreed to let Amir pick up his notes: Amit Hampel, interview with the author, August 4, 2013.
49Rabbis and students at the seminary: Kifner, “The Making of Rabin’s Killer.”
51A photographer snapped pictures: Yigal Amir, court records, 1995–1996.
51At home, he related the events: Hagai Amir, interview with the author, July 14, 2013.
52Rabin liked to joke: Niva Lanir, interview with the author, April 25, 2013.
53“Rabin is a traitor, Rabin is a traitor”: Noa Rothman, interview with the author, July 9, 2013.
54But he became skeptical: Karpin and Friedman, Murder in the Name of God, 23.
54Amir divided Israelis into two camps: Yigal Amir, court records, 1995–1996.
55blueprint for a “Jewish intifada”: Amir Gilat, “We’ll Light a Fire,” Ma’ariv, November 1, 1993.
56it wasn’t just Israel fretting: Nahum Barnea and Shimon Shiffer, “Taba First,” Yedioth Ahronoth, October 15, 1993.
Chapter 3
60harbinger of bad news: Noa Rothman, interview with the author, July 9, 2013.
62The bag Goldstein had carried: The crime scene is described in Danny Yatom, The Confidant (Israel: Yedioth Ahronoth, Hebrew, 2009), chapter 9. See also, Jacob Perry, Strike First (Tel Aviv: Keshet, Hebrew, 1999), 271.
62“transferring these hostile Arabs”: Kiryat Arba election pamphlet, as cited in a memorial book for Goldstein titled Baruch the Man and edited by Michael Ben-Horin.
63“treasonous politicians”: Ibid.
63“He just threw his medical bag”: Eliezer Waldman, interview with the author, June 26, 2013.
64suspected that he received at least tacit approval: Hezi Kalo, interview with the author, September 12, 2013.
66just as he expected Arafat to do with Hamas: Perry, Strike First, 273.
67“ambivalence” of Israeli police officers: Yehudit Karp, Investigations of Suspicions Against Israelis in Judea and Samaria (Israeli Government Press Office, 1982).
67Goldstein called his insurance agent: Benny Barak and Avinoam Porat, “Two Days Before the Massacre, Goldstein Took Out a Quarter Million Shekel Life Insurance Policy,” Yedioth Ahronoth, March 8, 1994.
67“America’s ‘Gift’ to Israel”: Richard S. Gunther and Gary E. Rubin, “America’s ‘Gift’ to Israel,” Newsday, March 3, 1994.
67He had been nursing a toothache: Nahum Barnea and Shimon Shiffer, “Rabin at 72. A Birthday Conversation,” Yedioth Ahronoth, February 25, 1994.
68“That’s not how Zionism works”: Eliezer Waldman, interview with the author, June 26, 2013.
68“cancer in the body of Israeli democracy”: Idit Zertal and Akiva Eldar, Lords of the Land: The War over Israel’s Settlements in the Occupied Territories (New York: Nation Books, 2007), 47.
70“In this whole process, the extremists are getting stronger”: Yoel Bin-Nun, interview with author, May 2013. Bin Nun shared with the author some of the letters he exchanged with Rabin between 1992 and 1995.
71“[The idea] was to break Rabin”: Michael Karpin and Ina Friedman, Murder in the Name of God: The Plot to Kill Yitzhak Rabin (London: Granta Books, 1998), 69.
72Rabin waited silently: Amos Eiran, who accompanied Rabin, interview with the author, July 2, 2013.
72“He felt they were undermining everything”: Uri Dromi, interview with the author, May 1, 2013.
73“a saint, a great man”: Patrick Anidjar, “Kach Extremists Who Backed Massacre Go Underground,” Agence France-Presse, February 28, 1994.
74“Hollow and superficial”: Ed Blanche, “Israel Moves Against Jewish Extremists,” Associated Press, February 27, 1994.
74He also wanted an international force: Uri Savir, The Process: 1,100 Days That Changed the Middle East (New York: Vintage Books, 1998), Kindle edition, chapter 5.
76“An IDF soldier, though Jewish”: Elyakim Haetzni, “Civil Disobedience Now,” Nekuda, January 1994.
76“But if the government does”: Zvi Zinger, “Settlers Calling on Soldiers to Refuse Evacuating Settlements,” Yedioth Ahronoth, March 11, 1994.
77“high likelihood of violent”: Ehud Sprinzak, Brother Against Brother: Violence and Extremism in Israeli Politics from Altalena to the Rabin Assassination (New York: The Free Press, 1999), 251.
78Ben-Yair, the attorney general, would come to regret: Michael Ben Yair, interview with the author, June 12, 2013.
80an episode of The Golden Girls: Dennis Ross, The Missing Peace: The Inside Story of the Fight for Middle East Peace (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2004), 131.
81One of the bodies at the scene: Clyde Haberman, “Arab Car Bomber Kills 8 in Israel; 44 Are Wounded,” New York Times, April 7, 1994.
82“Keep Hope Alive”: Said Ghazali, “Soldiers Shoot Stone-Throwers During Jackson Hebron Visit,” Associated Press, April 8, 1994.
Chapter 4
85Amir had been studying in the kolel: Michael Karpin and Ina Friedman, Murder in the Name of God: The Plot to Kill Yitzhak Rabin (London: Granta Books, 1998),16.
86“You don’t see a lot of people willing”: Hagai Amir, interview with the author, July 2013.
86he would have chosen a better target: Yigal Amir, court records, 1995–1996.
87“deep emotional bond”: Nava Holtzman, witness statement, November 1995.
87She regarded her Gali as handsome: Geulah Amir, interview with the author, August 8, 2013.
88a judicial commission to investigate: After deliberating for seven years, the Cohen Commission found no evidence that children were snatched from their parents. Most probably died of disease and malnutrition.
90stop at Rachel’s home: Rachel Adani, witness statement, November 1995.
92“The objective he set for himself”: Jacob Perry, Strike First (Tel Aviv: Keshet, Hebrew, 1999), 273.
94“The Torah is the brain”: Yigal Amir, court records, 1995–1996.
95“There’s no such thing as cognitive dissonance”: Ibid.
96“If he had a sense of humor”: David Margolick, “Star of Zion,” Vanity Fair, June 1996.
97“The Likud has got to come to terms”: “Senior Likud Figure Bucks His Party, Calls for Acceptance of Deal with the PLO,” Jewish Telegraphic Agency, August 2, 1994.
97and consorting with rabbis: Daniel Shilo, interview with the author, September 12, 2014. “There were many meetings in the home of Rabbi [Avraham] Shapira, many of them with the participation of Netanyahu. And from the home of Rabbi Shapira . . . there were repeated calls on soldiers not to evacuate settlements or military bases.”
97“We have an issue with political adversaries”: Undated YouTube clip, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ms8si-ekSX4.
98The three Israelis spent the week: Nava Holtzman, witness statement, November 1995.
99When they got back to Bar-Ilan: Ibid.
99To Hagai, Amir said he no longer wanted: Hagai Amir, interview with the author, July 1995.
99the relationship might have distracted him: Karpin and Friedman, Murder in the Name of God, 168.
100looking for a woman genuinely committed: Nili Kolman, witness statement, November 1995.
101she would mimic his defense: Margalit Har-Shefi, witness statement, November 1995.
102Adani, who had been pondering on his own: Yigal Amir, court records, 1995–1996.
102They’re paid by the state: Dror Adani, court records, 1995–1996.
103he thought Amir intended the militia: Ohad Skornik, witness statement, November 1995.
103But Amir felt certain: Yigal Amir, court records, 1995–1996.
104he intended to shoot Rabin: Margalit Har-Shefi, witness statement, November 1995.
105the rabbi advised against it: Ibid.
105a holy martyr: Sefi Rachlevsky, “A Racist, Messianic Rabbi Is the Ruler of Israel,” Ha’aretz, July 1, 2011.
106“What is the rule about this bad government”: Ehud Sprinzak, Brother Against Brother: Violence and Extremism in Israeli Politics from Altalena to the Rabin Assassination (New York: The Free Press, 1999), 254.
106the rabbis were hoping with the letter: Daniel Shilo, interview with the author, September 12, 2014.
106“If I did not get the backing”: Yigal Amir, as quoted in the report of the Shamgar Commission, 89.
Chapter 5
110“I will burn Gaza to the ground”: Eitan Haber, interview with the author, February 18, 2013.
111Arafat would be able to fight terrorism: Yitzhak Rabin, Mabat, Israel Television Channel 1, March 1, 1994.
111settlers hired several hundred : Daniel Shilo, interview with the author, September 12, 2014.
112The figure dropped by 79 percent: Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics.
113“No doubt about it”: Eitan Haber, interview with the author, February 18, 2013.
113The first year of peacemaking: Roni Shaked, “Terror at an All Time High During Year of Peace,” Yedioth Ahronoth, September 13, 1994.
115“Don’t worry. . . . We just want to trade”: Jihad Yarmur, recounting the abduction for police investigators. Excerpts of his videotaped interrogation appeared in Levi Zini, dir., Nachshon Wachsman: Countdown to Death, Alma Films, 2010.
116Soldiers were always heading off: Esther Wachsman, interview with the author, June 23, 2013.
116first film screening in seven years: David Regev, “The First Screening of Movie in Gaza,” Yedioth Ahronoth, September 18, 1994.
117she felt immense relief at the evidence: Esther Wachsman, interview with the author, June 23, 2013.
117A few loathsome kidnappers had reduced: Zini, Nachshon Wachsman.
119“There’s not a single Hamas person”: Ibid.
121Esther asked Clinton: Esther Wachsman, interview with the author, June 23, 2013.
122a government commission banned some interrogation: The Landau Commission, 1987.
122Yes, she finally said: Carmi Gillon, Shin Beth Between the Schisms (Tel Aviv: Yedioth Ahronoth, Hebrew, 2000), 220.
123“Not one person objected”: Zini, Nachshon Wachsman.
123they left the Defense Ministry separately: Gillon, Shin Beth Between the Schisms, 221.
124Haber was mesmerized: Zini, Nachshon Wachsman.
125“At this time, Israel Defense Forces soldier”: Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs, http://mfa.gov.il/MFA/ForeignPolicy/MFADocuments/Yearbook9/Pages/237%20Statement%20by%20Prime%20Minister%20Rabin%20upon%20notific.aspx.
126And Hamas had a track record: Gillon, Shin Beth Between the Schisms, 221.
126“We have a rule”: Zini, Nachshon Wachsman.
126the operation was a go: Gillon, Shin Beth Between the Schisms, 222.
127Lotan heard the man inside: Zini, Nachshon Wachsman.
127“I understood from his expression”: Ibid.
127“They had a very traumatic visit”: Dalia Rabin, interview with the author, June 10, 2013.
128Esther noticed his eyes: Esther Wachsman, interview with the author, June 23, 2013.
128“Yasser Arafat earned many points”: Gillon, Shin Beth Between the Schisms, 218.
128“He said, ‘That’s my red line’ ”: Eitan Haber, interview with the author, February 18, 2013.
129“Arafat is disappointed”: Nahum Barnea and Shimon Shiffer, “I Did Enough in the Negotiations with Assad.” Yedioth Ahronoth, October 28, 1994.
130He informed neither Peres nor Rabin: Yossi Beilin, interview with the author, July 7, 2013.
132“carrying the envelope”: Shimon Sheves, interview with the author, August 15, 2013.
132When Norwegian security men watched: Nahum Barnea, “Peres Stumbled; The Norwegians Thought It Was an Assassination,” Yedioth Ahronoth, December 11, 1994.
Chapter 6
134“May it be Your will that You heal me”: “The Viduy Confession Prayers,” http://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/364287/jewish/The-Viduy-Confession-Prayers.htm.
135But somehow, Shabak knew only about: Hezi Kalo, interview with the author, September 12, 2013.
136The last time a Jewish leader: The leader was Haim Arlosoroff. See Shabtai Teveth, The Arlosoroff Murder (Tel Aviv: Shoken, Hebrew, 1982).
136“At the moment of crisis”: Roni Shaked, “It’s Difficult but the Extreme Right Can Be Infiltrated,” Yedioth Ahronoth (Hebrew), October 29, 2004.
137an emerging plot to murder Peres: Hezi Kalo, interview with the author, September 12, 2013.
138he reminded himself that he had tried: Yigal Amir, court records, 1995–1996.
138“If I’m going to act”: Yigal Amir, court records, 1995–1996.
138din rodef applied to Rabin: Margalit Har-Shefi, witness statement, November 1995.
138Rosenbloom, who organized the protest: Shmuel Rosenbloom, witness statement, November 1995.
139As a rule, the more radical the group: Carmi Gillon, Shin Beth Between the Schisms (Tel Aviv: Yedioth Ahronoth, Hebrew, 2000), 249.
139Raviv seemed spellbound: Benzion Gopstein, interview with the author, February 3, 2014.
140“We got very angry”: Dani Dayan, interview with the author, July 30, 2013.
141summoned him repeatedly for rebukes: Gillon, Shin Beth Between the Schisms, 247.
141He bragged separately to Har-Shefi: Yigal Amir, court records, 1995–1996.
141Geulah thought Amir was still brooding: Geulah Amir, witness statement, November 1995.
142God would reward the person: Dror Adani, court records, 1995–1996.
143“Rabin’s character exemplifies”: Uri Milstein, “Begin, Shamir, Sharon and Raful Are All Accomplices in the Big Lie Named Rabin,” Nukuda, July 1995.
143“There, they were forced to collaborate”: Gillon, Shin Beth Between the Schisms, 239.
143“They [Hamas] receive signals from both”: Benjamin Netanyahu, Mabat, Israel Television Channel 1, March 30, 1995.
144“pushes the extremists even further”: Gillon, Shin Beth Between the Schisms, 237.
144Instead, Shabak purchased an armored Cadillac: Ibid., 268.
145“Are you out of your mind?”: Ibid., 273.
146So torn was Rabin that he offered: Ami Ayalon, interview with the author, July 29, 2013.
149“He didn’t think it was a real threat”: Mordechai Alon, “I Could Have Saved Rabin,” Yedioth Ahronoth, November 16, 1995.
151“If you’re wearing one”: Dror Mor, interview with the author, June 10, 2013.
152“We took it into consideration”: Ibid.
152“Dignitary Protection was a cocky unit”: Shlomo Harnoy, interview with the author, July 3, 2013.
154He also admitted to teaching two minors: The report of the Shamgar Commission.
155He found Rabin alone in a back room: Carmi Gillon, interview with the author, June 6, 2013.
157“He really wanted to kill Rabin”: Dror Adani, court records, 1995–1996.
157Occasionally, he raised the concern: Ibid.
Chapter 7
160watched Arafat press his arm to Rabin’s back: Martin Indyk, Innocent Abroad: An Intimate Account of American Peace Diplomacy in the Middle East (New York: Simon & Schuster, 2009), 1.
161climbed the roof of a building: Yaron Kaner, “Eyal Seminar in Hebron, Organized by Yigal Amir,” Yedioth Ahronoth, November 10, 1995.
162At meals, Amir would stand up and announce: Ibid.
163a sizeable gathering of extremists: Shai Fogelman, “Fifteen Years After Conducting the Pulsa Dinura Against Rabin, Avigdor Eskin Unites Right-Wing Extremists from Around the World,” Ha’aretz (Hebrew), October 28, 2010.
163“Angels of destruction”: Ehud Sprinzak, Brother Against Brother: Violence and Extremism in Israeli Politics from Altalena to the Rabin Assassination (New York: The Free Press, 1999), 275.
164“This is the ornament”: “Itamar Ben-Gvir in His Youth,” YouTube clip, uploaded November 15, 2010, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T7KkLWTcEYM.
164“You better restrain your people”: Michael Karpin and Ina Friedman, Murder in the Name of God: The Plot to Kill Yitzhak Rabin (London: Granta Books, 1998), 97.
165When he spotted Har-Shefi on the street: Margalit Har-Shefi, witness statement, November 1995.
165Ofir kicked and spat at policemen: Zvi Harel, “District Court Convicts Hebrew University Rabbi,” Haaretz, February 14, 1997.
167the Islamic Jihad leader who had boasted: Robert Fisk, “The Doctor Who Finds Death a Laughing Matter,” The Independent, January 30, 1995.
167Skornik would notice in a video: Ohad Skornik, witness statement, November 1995.
167students talked about starting: Nili Kolman, witness statement, November 1995.
167he suggested they drive to Shavei Shomron: Hagai Amir, interview with the author, July 2013.
168discussed the counter-rally that rightists planned: Nili Kolman, witness statement, November 1995.
168“We don’t talk about things like that”: Yuval Rabin, interview with the author, June 12, 2013.
168Motti Naftali began directing: Motti Naftali, interview with the author, April 25, 2013.
169It was a lesson they learned: Dror Mor, interview with the author, June 10, 2013.
170“Rabin is going to be assassinated”: Ibid.
170defuse a crisis with Peres: Shimon Sheves, interview with the author, June 1, 2013.
170“You bring Leah”: Shahar Segal, dir., A Prime Minister’s Schedule, Israel, 1998.
171 a quick trip to the mikva: Hagai Amir, interview with the author, July 2013.
172If Shabak had somehow been on to him: Ibid.
173If a policeman approached: Yigal Amir, court records, 1995–1996.
173“What a weirdo”: Ibid.
173if Rabin was wearing a bulletproof vest: Leah Rabin, Rabin: Our Life, His Legacy (New York: G. P. Putnam’s Sons, 1997), 8.
175the second bullet must come from: Dror Mor, interview with the author, June 10, 2013.
175“It’s not real, it’s not real”: Ofer Gamliel, interview with the author, July 23, 2013.
175“Listen to me and no one else”: Yoram Rubin, witness statement, November 1995.
176did Cohen realize this elderly man: Naftali Glicksberg, dir., An Unclosed Case, Israel, Alma Films, 2005.
176Gutman wanted Rabin in the surgery room: Gal Ochovski, “The Last Minutes of Rabin’s Life,” Ma’ariv, November 3, 2000.
177“Don’t worry, it’s not real”: Shai Glaser, HaMakor, Israeli Channel 10, November 10, 2009.
177“Why aren’t you at the hospital?”: Rabin, Rabin: Our Life, His Legacy, 12.
179At 11:02 p.m.: Ochovski, “The Last Minutes of Rabin’s Life.”
180“From the look on his face”: Bill Clinton, “Rabin Inspired Trust Even in Arafat,” Yedioth Ahronoth, December 23, 2014.
180“This idiot took my Yitzhak away”: Shahar Segal, A Prime Minister’s Schedule.
181Amir delivered a full confession: Yuval Gershon, witness statements, November 1995.
182“I did it”: Motti Naftali, interview with the author, April 25, 2013.
183How could you do this to me: Hagai Amir, interview with the author, July 1995.
184The policemen and Shabak agents: Ibid.
Chapter 8
189Gillon felt a constant anxiety: Carmi Gillon, Shin Beth Between the Schisms (Tel Aviv: Yedioth Ahronoth, Hebrew, 2000), 11.
190“inconceivable reality”: Leah Rabin, Rabin: Our Life, His Legacy (New York: G. P. Putnam’s Sons, 1997), 20.
190She roused her mother: Dalia Rabin, interview with the author, June 5, 2013.
191House Speaker Newt Gingrich complained: Itamar Rabinovich, interview with the author, June 17, 2013.
191Yuval mispronounced many of the words: Eitan Haber, interview with the author, August 5, 2013.
192“In a democratic state, I’m allowed”: Storer H. Rowley, “As Crackdown Looms, Settlers Tone Down,” Chicago Tribune, November 10, 1995.
192“You couldn’t board a bus”: Israel Harel, interview with the author, June 18, 2013.
193“What did you people do to us?”: Yedidia Stern, interview with the author, August 1, 2013.
194She had agreed to host: Israel Harel, interview with the author, June 18, 2013.
199“He’s not mine anymore”: Geulah Amir, Mabat, Israel Television Channel 1, November 9, 1995.
201Frank had slipped into near catatonia: Mordechai Alon, “I Could Have Saved Rabin,” Yedioth Ahronoth, November 16, 1995.
203Shabak found itself on the defensive: Forty-six percent of Israelis said their faith in Shabak had been eroded, according to an opinion poll published in Yedioth Ahronoth, November 11, 1995.
204a new survey showed him losing to Peres: Yedioth Ahronoth, November 10. The poll gave Peres 54 percent of the vote, Netanyahu 23, undecided 12.
205Beilin had been planning: Yossi Beilin, interview with the author, July 27, 2013.
205“Rabin became a saint that night”: Nahum Barnea, interview with the author, December 3, 2013.
205“I thought it was unfair”: Shimon Peres, interview with the author, February 15, 2012.
206Why didn’t you urge Rabin to surrender: Uzi Baram, interview with the author, June 11, 2013.
206“hypothetical, conditional willingness”: Itamar Rabinovich, interview with the author, June 17, 2013.
208“Based on everything we knew”: Ron Pundak, interview with the author, September 30, 2013.
208“Peres was very seasoned at timetables”: Itamar Rabinovich, interview with the author, June 17, 2013.
209fearing one of them might be tempted: Shlomo Harnoy, interview with the author, July 3, 2013.
Chapter 9
212“There is simply no alternative”: Amos Oz, “Israelis Will Not Stand for Fanaticism,” Newsweek, November 20, 1995.
213the woman married the mailman: Uri Savir, The Process: 1,100 Days That Changed the Middle East (New York: Vintage Books, 1998), Kindle edition, chapter 9.
213“The solution they were seeking was”: Ibid.
214If Palestinian terrorism picked up: Uzi Baram, interview with the author, June 11, 2013.
215“If they would have attacked us”: Hagai Amir, interview with the author, July 2013.
215“The problem is these Torah authorities”: Joel Greenberg, “Rabbis and Settlers Dispute Their Own Culpability in Rabin’s Assassination,” New York Times, November 9, 1995.
216“I have no doubt in retrospect”: Ofer Gamliel, interview with the author, July 23, 2013.
219“The morale was low”: Carmi Gillon, Shin Beth Between the Schisms (Tel Aviv: Yedioth Ahronoth, Hebrew, 2000), 359.
219On the first Friday of the New Year: Dror Moreh, dir., The Gatekeepers, Israel, Cinephil, 2012.
220Peres grew tired of Assad’s dithering: Savir, The Process, chapter 9.
223“I’m sorry to have to convey”: Eitan Amit, “Nahum Barnea Came Back with an Empty Notebook This Time,” Yedioth Ahronoth, February 26, 1996.
223“You lost a vote”: Yaron London, “History’s Bloody Bargain,” Yedioth Ahronoth, February 27, 1996.
224Ayalon now faced a dilemma: Ami Ayalon, interview with the author, July 29, 2013.
224“There were thousands of people around”: Shimon Peres, interview with the author, February 15, 2012.
227“He simply couldn’t fathom”: Douglas F. Schoen, The Power of the Vote (New York, William Morrow, 2007), 83.
227The two men also had a history: David Landau, who co-wrote two books with Peres, interview with the author, June 23, 2013.
230The fact that Gamliel had solved: Gamliel discussed the issue for the first time on the Israeli Channel 10 news show HaMakor on November 10, 2009, and later with the author. To this day, the Shabak man has never been identified.
231The unit’s company commander: Bennett would go on to become the leader of the right-wing Jewish Home Party. Whether he bore responsibility for the Qana mishap would be debated vigorously in the Israeli media many years after the incident. See Amos Harel, “Was Bennett Really to Blame for the Deaths of 102 Lebanese Civilians in 1996 Battle?” Ha’aretz, January 7, 2015.
231“These were sleepless nights”: Shimon Peres, interview with the author, February 15, 2012.
234opinion poll conducted after the broadcast: Poll by Dahaf, published in Yedioth Ahronoth, May 28, 1996: Peres 51.5 percent, Netanyahu 48.5 percent.
235the Israeli who voted twice: Thomas L. Friedman, “And One Man Voted Twice,” New York Times, June 2, 1996.
235Analysts would put the actual participation level: Daniel J. Elazar and Shmuel Sandler, Israel at the Polls, 1996 (London: Frank Cass, 1998), 6.
236Peres told her he would be home soon: Yossi Beilin, interview with the author, July 7, 2013.
Epilogue
240the Michael Jordan of his profession: Jim Walsh, “Shooting Reconstructionist ‘Michael Jordan of Profession,’ ” Arizona Republic, June 24, 2004.
257Amir tried to pass semen: Eli Senyor, “Yigal Amir Attempts to Smuggle Semen,” YNet, March 9, 2006.