BICOM

The US President was among the first global leaders to pay tribute to Israel’s former President Shimon Peres, who passed away overnight.

In a statement, Obama called Peres “the essence of Israel itself,” and said that “no one did more over so many years as Shimon Peres to build the alliance between our two countries”. Obama also said that Peres was one of the “few people who we share this world with who change the course of human history, not just through their role in human events, but because they expand our moral imagination and force us to expect more of ourselves”.

Meanwhile, former US President Bill Clinton, who was in office when Peres signed the Oslo Accords, called Peres “a genius with a big heart who used his gifts to imagine a future of reconciliation not conflict”. He added that “the Middle East has lost a fervent advocate for peace,” while he and his wife Hillary, the Democratic presidential candidate, have lost a “true and treasured friend”.

Australian Prime Minister Malcom Turnbull also paid tribute, saying: “Shimon Peres was a fierce defender of Israel’s security and its ability to defend itself. He was equally a tireless advocate for peace”.

Germany’s Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier has said of Peres’s passing: “We mourn for a brave and wise voice. The world has lost a great statesman.”

Although no details of Peres’s funeral have officially been announced, Israeli media reports that he will lie in state at the Knesset tomorrow before being laid to rest on Friday morning at Jerusalem’s Mount Herzl, in a plot reserved for the nation’s leaders. Fox News reports that President Obama will attend the funeral. Other outlets have reported Prince Charles, Hillary and Bill Clinton, Pope Francis and a number of world leaders will also be in attendance.