Holocaust survivor Tom Lantos, who died Tuesday, "never abandoned his values or lost his self-respect" despite losing his family the Holocaust, Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni told mourners on Capitol Hill Thursday. Lantos was a veteran California Democratic Congressman and a staunch supporter of Israel.

"The free world has lost a great leader, and Israel has lost a great friend," the Foreign Minister added. "Tom Lantos represents in our eyes--as a man--what we aspire to represent as a nation." American Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice also attended the ceremony, and the two officials later spoke about negotiations with the Palestinian Authority (PA).