Israel bids farewell to renowned author Amos Oz

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Hundreds of people have bid a final farewell to renowned Israeli author Amos Oz at a memorial service in Tel Aviv.
Oz, a leading figure in Israel’s now-struggling peace movement, passed away on Friday at the age of 79, after a battle with cancer.
Oz was revered by Israel’s dovish left wing as an eloquent and outspoken advocate of peace with the Palestinians.
President Reuven Rivlin, as well as leading left-wing politicians, stage actors and other cultural figures attended Monday’s service. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas sent a message expressing condolences.
Oz wrote dozens of books, including a well-received 2002 memoir, and won numerous literary prizes in a half-century career.
He’s to be buried later Monday at Kibbutz Hulda, the communal farm in central Israel where he lived for many years.