Rabin Square (Hebrew: כיכר רבין, Kikar Rabin), formerly Kings of Israel Square (Hebrew: כיכר מלכי ישראל, Kikar Malkhey Yisrael), is a main large public city square in the center of Tel Aviv. Over the years it has been the site of numerous political rallies, parades, and other public events. The square was renamed ‘Rabin Square’ following the assassination of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin which occurred there on November 4th, 1995.
The square is about 17 dunams in size, most of it paved, and it is estimated that it has a capacity of about 30,000 people. In the southern part of the square is a memorial sculpture designed by Israeli artist Igael Tumarkin commemorating the Holocaust. The monument is in the shape of an inverted pyramid, made of rusty iron and glass. At the northeastern end of the square, where Yitzhak Rabin was shot and killed, a monument in his memory was erected. In the northern part of the square is an elevated plaza, which connects the square to the Tel Aviv town hall. When rallies are held in the square, this plaza is used as a stage by the speakers.
The square is surrounded by the Tel Aviv City Hall to the north, Ibn Gabirol Street to the east, Malkhey Yisrael (Kings of Israel) Street to the south, and Hen Boulevard to the west. It was designed alongside the city hall in 1964.
Being the main square of the city, it is used for rallies of various kinds: Independence Day celebrations, demonstrations, open concerts, election rallies, and more. It is also used for various fairs, the most prominent of which are Hebrew Book Week and the Four Species Fair.
History of Rabin Square
During the British Mandate (before the founding of Israel), the area of the square was filled with orchards. Towards the end of the 1940s, the development of the city pushed for the uprooting of the orchards and buildings near the square area. In the northern part of the square stood the orchard irrigation pool, which was used after its displacement as the first municipal swimming pool in Tel Aviv, where the sports associations trained and the school children learned to swim. This pool was demolished when the town hall was erected.
Until the early 1990s, the square was used on Israel’s Independence Day, as a public exhibition ground for IDF field units (mostly armor and heavy artillery). The square has also been the site of many political rallies and demonstrations.
Prime Minister of Israel, Yitzhak Rabin, was assassinated at the conclusion of a peace rally at the site on November 4, 1995. In the days following the event, thousands of Israelis gathered at the square to commemorate Rabin. The young people who came to mourn Rabin were referred to as the “Candles Youth” after the many candles they lit. A part of the graffiti they drew upon the nearby walls has been preserved.
A memorial stands on the spot where Rabin was assassinated (at the northeast corner of the square, below City Hall). Part of the memorial is a small, open legacy wall for Rabin.
