Peres wants Rabin's killing re-examined

SHIMON PERES, a former prime minister of Israel, called yesterday for the reopening of the investigation into the 1995 assassination of then Prime Minister, Yitzhak Rabin.

"I am concerned that there are people - Rabin's family - who believe there is still something to examine, so we must investigate," said Mr Peres, who took over as leader after Yigal Amir, an ultranationalist Jew, gunned down Mr Rabin.

Conspiracy buffs have long speculated that the Shin Bet security service, in charge of protecting Rabin, was involved in the assassination, an allegation that found no support in the report of an official commission that investigated the killing.

"We must investigate again so that everyone is convinced matters were looked into properly," said Mr Peres, who is now the Minister of Regional Co-operation in Ehud Barak's government. Mr Barak, who has described Rabin as his mentor, said he was confident "every question raised would be examined and clarified". But he told reporters he had yet to receive a direct request for a re-examination of the killing.

Conspiracy theorists have also pointed to alleged discrepancies in findings by a doctor who examined Rabin after he was shot, and the pathologist who conducted his autopsy. (Reuters)