Israelis on Tuesday paid tribute to Mahatma Gandhi on his 149th birth anniversary at the Mahatma Gandhi roundabout in Israel's southern town Kiryat Gat.
Kiryat Gat is a small township in the south of Israel with about 2000 Indians from the Bene Israel community living here.
The first and only roundabout in the country named after Mahatma Gandhi was inaugurated here in January 2016 to mark 60 years of the establishment of the township.
Paying warm tributes to Mahatma Gandhi, the Mayor of Kiryat Gat, Aviram Dahari, said, "It is an honour to be remembering Gandhi whose message still remains relevant."
"Gandhi Jayanti celebrations here is a reflection of the warm friendly relationship between the people of India and Israel. We have been gathering here to pay respects to the great soul every October and January since the roundabout was inaugurated. It is also a matter of pride for the Indian community in the town and the whole of Israel," Roger Judah, an Indian community leader in the town, said.
The initiative to name the roundabout after Gandhi and to place a plaque there was led by Judah.
"The political and spiritual leader who led the Indian independence movement in its struggle against the British empire. Became a symbol of tolerance and resolving conflicts non-violently. Inspired many freedom and human rights fighters throughout the world," the plaque placed at the roundabout reads in English and Hebrew.
Gandhi's photo, the only one, also hangs on the walls of the hut of Israel's first Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion in the southern region of Sde Boker in the Negev.
Despite political differences between Zionist leaders and leaders of the Indian national movement, Gandhi enjoyed respect of most of the Jewish leaders.
Gandhi shared a close association with the Jewish community in South Africa and some recent publications in Israel have tried to highlight the strong bonding between him and some of his Jewish friends.
Israel also has a street named after Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore.
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