11-6-2017 Enemies and Neighbours: Arabs and Jews in Palestine and Israel, 1917-2017 – Ian Black Guardian

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2017/nov/06/enemies-and-neighbours-arabs-and-jews-in-palestine-and-israel-1917-2017

 

Review of Enemies and Neighbours: Ian Black brings a fresh perspective to one of the most closely studied conflicts on Earth, unpacking its complexities with clarity and candour… Unlike previous histories of the conflict, this pays less attention to the diplomatic affairs of the world powers that played a role in the region and in Arab-Israeli relations. For some readers, this will feel like a drawback, but its relentless focus on Israelis and Palestinians, to the near exclusion of other players, is one of its strengths.  The greatest myth of the conflict is that both sides are the proxies of much greater powers. But in recent decades, most of the Arab nations have quietly accommodated Israel's presence, engaging in not-so-secret alliances against joint enemies. The world powers have focused on other, more pressing, events in the region – Iraq, Syria, the rise and fall of Isis. The Israel-Palestine conflict remains one between two enemies who refuse to accept their fate to live as neighbours.

Posted by Judith Ferster, AIME member

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