Rachel Rabin-Yaakov, Kibbutz Manara Co-Founder and Rabin's Sister, Dies at 101

Rachel Rabin-Yaakov, one of the founding members of Kibbutz Manara and the younger sister of the late Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, passed away on Friday at the age of 101. Born in Tel Aviv in 1925 to Rosa Cohen—known publicly as "Red Rosa"—and Nehemiah Rabin, an electric company employee, Rabin-Yaakov dedicated her life to pioneering education and public service.

Pioneering the Galilee

After completing her studies in 1942, she joined the HaNoar HaOved pioneering nucleus for agricultural training in the north. A year later, at just 18 years old, she joined her comrades to establish Kibbutz Manara, which became the first Jewish settlement in the Naftali Mountains. Reflecting on those early days in a project documenting Israel's founding generation, she recalled:

We ascended as a very small group. The mountain was bare and desolate—no trees, no roads, no water.

Defense and Dedication

Remaining a member of Manara for over 80 years until her final day, she served in numerous roles, including educator, secretary, and board member. During the 1948 War of Independence, while most mothers and children were evacuated, Rabin-Yaakov chose to stay on the mountain. She underwent rapid training to serve as a radio operator and medic, defending the settlement and treating wounded fighters.

President Isaac Herzog paid tribute to her, describing her as a "model of educational and public action." Herzog noted her bravery as a 1948 war veteran and added: "I know how deeply she grieved the assassination of her brother Yitzhak, yet alongside that, she chose to continue devoting herself to action for the common good."

A Lifetime of Education

For decades, Rabin-Yaakov shaped Israel's educational landscape. She taught Manara's first class and helped establish the Har V'Gai regional school at Kibbutz Dafna. Later, she headed the supervision department in the Ministry of Education's settlement education division and chaired the academic teachers' colleges Oranim and Seminar HaKibbutzim.

In September 2026, a biographical book written by her granddaughter, Maya Valentine, was published. Asked about her unwavering commitment to Kibbutz Manara, Rabin-Yaakov once explained simply: