ASSASSINATION AFTERMATH : Venting Emotions in Cyberspace

Wired mourners of Yitzhak Rabin turned to computers to vent their shock and grief in cyberspace. A sampling:

“As an Irishman who has visited Israel three times I am so, so sad.”

--Maurice O’Sullivan of Bray, Ireland.

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“No one imagined a day when an Israeli would kill his/her own prime minister.”

--Announcement in the Israel Forum, a discussion group on CompuServe.

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In law school “we were taught to respect the rule of law, even if we [as myself] have deep political differences with political opponents.”

--Charles Baron, an alumnus of the university where the gunman was enrolled.

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“May our tears and prayers be the prelude to a new and courageous unity among our people, so that it may never be said that Yitzhak Rabin died for naught.”

--Dave Geller, 30, marketing consultant and Israeli army veteran

Tragic Countdown

Just over 90 minutes separated news that Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin had been shot and the official announcement of his death:

8:30 p.m. Rabin addresses rally in Tel Aviv.

9:40 p.m. Rabin is shot as he steps off stage and walks to car. He is rushed to hospital in about one minute.

11:06 p.m. Israel Radio reports that Rabin’s condition is very serious.

11:10 p.m.: Doctors pronounce Rabin dead on the operating table.