Rachel Rabin Yaakov, Sister of Yitzhak Rabin and Kibbutz Founder, Dies at 102

Rachel Rabin Yaakov, the sister of the late Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and a founder of Kibbutz Menara, passed away on Friday at the age of 102. Born in 1925, Rabin Yaakov was an educator and was among the pioneers who established Kibbutz Menara in the Upper Galilee, where she taught the first class. She was considered an influential voice within the kibbutz movement in the region.

Following the outbreak of the "Swords of Iron" war, she was evacuated from Kibbutz Menara, which faced daily shelling from Hezbollah, and had not returned due to her medical condition. She will be laid to rest on Monday at the kibbutz cemetery.

President Isaac Herzog eulogized Rabin Yaakov, remembering her "long and impressive life journey" as a model of "educational and public endeavor." He recalled her as one of the "pioneers who clung to the rocky land on an isolated mountain and established Kibbutz Menara." Herzog also noted that Rabin Yaakov fought in the 1948 War of Independence to defend the kibbutz she helped build. For decades, she was a leading figure in Menara and the kibbutz movement, educating many students who would remember her unique impact. The President added that he knew how much she grieved her brother Yitzhak's assassination, yet she chose to continue her public service, earning her numerous awards and honors.