CRI听力:Local citizens and politicians in Israel bid farewell to Peres

Shimon Peres has been dubbed "a visionary eternal optimist and soldier of peace" by many in Israel.

As the country gears up for his state funeral, politicians and average citizens are taking time to recall what the Nobel Peace Prize-winning statesman meant to them.

Einat Wilf is a former foreign policy adviser to Peres.

"I do not think I have ever seen anyone like him, and I do not think I have ever learned in history about anyone like him. It was the combination of actually making history and then being the person who actually envisions it and carries it out. You do not have people like that, so he is rare, and he does stand out even in the world of world leaders."

In Tel Aviv, the most common word being used to describe his death this week is "loss."

"I think more than anything everybody kind of feels like they lost one of our last real leaders is this country."

"He was a very unselfish man. I feel like his entire life was dedicated to this country. That is why it is a personal loss and a collective loss."

Peres served in a dozen cabinets during his political career, which spanned nearly 70 years.

He was part of almost every major development in Israel since its formation in 1948.

Beyond the numerous key government positions he held, the former Israeli President also pioneered the country's nuclear program, fostered high-tech development, and inaugurated a peace center built in his name, and on his vision of a conflict-free Middle East.

He also shares the Nobel Peace Prize with late former Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat for reaching a peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians in 1993.
Peres is set to be buried next to the assassinated Yitzhak Rabin.

Former Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livini says she considers herself a protégé of Shimon Peres.

"When I negotiated peace on behalf of the state of Israel, he was the one saying to me not to give up and continue even in difficult days, in times of terror, in this tough neighborhood, until his last day. He was not willing to give up peace."

Ahead of Peres' state funeral on Friday, his body will lie in state outside the Israel parliament for people to pay their respects.

World leaders and representatives from various countries including China, the U.S., Britain, France and Canada are set to attend his funeral.

For CRI, I'm Xie Cheng.