Israel bids farewell to renowned author Amos Oz

Israel bids farewell to renowned author Amos Oz
The coffin of Amos Oz is placed on a theater stage during his funeral service in Tel Aviv, Israel, Monday, Dec. 31, 2018. Israeli author Amos Oz, one of the country's most widely acclaimed writers and a pre-eminent voice in its embattled peace movement, died on Friday after a battle with cancer, his family announced. He was 79.(AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

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.