Ronit Elkabetz, a prolific Israeli actress and filmmaker whose work earned her stardom in France as well as at home, died Tuesday after a battle with cancer. She was 51. Elkabetz won three Ophir Awards, Israel's equivalent of the Oscars. Former President Shimon Peres mourned Elkabetz's passing, calling her a "cultural ambassador" of Israel. Elkabetz's darkly comic roles made her a regular at the Cannes Film Festival for much of the past 15 years. She broke out of the French cinephile circle with "Gett: The Trial of Viviane Amsalem," nominated for a Golden Globe award for best foreign film. Elkabetz is survived by her husband, Avner Yashar, and 4-year-old twin sons. She was to be laid to rest on Wednesday afternoon at the Kiryat Shaul Cemetery in north Tel Aviv.
