JERUSALEM, Oct 27 (AFP) - Israel "must never forget the lesson" of Yitzhak Rabin`s assassination, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said Wednesday at a ceremony to mark the ninth anniversary of the former premier`s killing by a right-wing extremist.
"We must never forget the lesson of this day," said Sharon, who has himself been the subject of recent death threats over his plans to pull Jewish settlers out of the Gaza Strip and parts of the northern West Bank.
Sharon was at times a fierce critic of Rabin`s stewardship of the Oslo peace accords with the Palestinians in the early 1990s and addressed mass rallies where Rabin was denounced as a traitor.
"If in the heat of a genuine argument, things were said that should not have been said, I regret that," Sharon said.
"Penetrating debates, as deep and sharp as it may be, is the essence of democracy. Freedom of expression must not be restricted, however one must guard one`s tongue."
During the ceremony on Jerusalem`s Mount Herzl, attended by Israeli leaders from across the political spectrum, the former Labour premier`s daughter Dalia told Sharon that her family firmly supported his pullout proposals.
"A new horror is being brewed. New threats are being made. A new target has been designated," she said.
"We want to express, prime minister, our support for your decision, your courage, your determination and to tell you that we fear for your life," she added.
Sharon, the leader of the right-wing Likud party who was once seen as an arch-hawk and the ultimate champion of the settlers, now goes nowhere in public without a massive security presence.
Yigal Amir is serving a life sentence at Israel`s Ayalon prison for the murder of the Nobel peace prize-winning Rabin at a peace rally in Tel Aviv. He has never expressed remorse over the killing and retains plenty of admirers.
10/27/2004 17:13 GMT - AFP