PREFACE
"Who's fighting and what for?"
— Mick Jagger, Altamont Raceway, 1969
The Palestine-Israel conflict is a fixture in news media the world over. And though taking place on a very small area of land, the tensions between Israel and Palestine send shockwaves around the globe. The conflict spanned most of the previous century and all of the present one so far. It has been documented, recorded, and analyzed in meticulous scholarly detail. We know well the history and its multitude of moving parts.
Yet, confusion persists, as do polarity and controversy. Especially in the United States, there exists a bewilderment and a tendency to deal in fallacies, fictions, and mythology. Oftentimes, in reaction to the news or conversations about the conflict, you might hear people make remarks such as: "Those people have been fighting for thousands of years." Or: "They're fighting because one guy's ancestors killed the other's." Or: "It has to do with religion and goes back to the Bible." Given the manner in which the conflict is packaged by the media—as a perpetual tallying of death and violence with no historical context—it is not surprising that many commonly make such judgments. But as with many things, what actually lies beneath the received imagery is quite different from the surface we are shown. This book attempts to provide what the news doesn't.
When I first set to working on the first edition of this book in late 2001, it was in response to two issues: Firstly, I had for years been confused with the utter lack of introductory material on the Palestine-Israel conflict. There was, of course, an abundance of books on the subject, but they were either big, specialized, or both; for such a topical and important issue, people had precious little to choose from if they wanted to get a "101" sense of the basics. Secondly, and more specifically, the September 11 attacks brought matters of the Middle East much closer to home. Not that this necessarily made them more important, but the experience was a stimulus in my decision making. Shortly after that Tuesday morning, I started assembling this project.
In producing the book I could never find I merely had to take stock of what was not being made available to readers and the news-watching public, namely: an introduction to the entire history of Canaan-Palestine-Israel, from the Paleolithic period to the present day. As a result, the first half of this book has almost nothing to do with the conflict directly; but a basic knowledge of the region's deep history is crucial to understanding and demythologizing the conflict. Naturally, the best way to dispel any myth is to present the facts that undermine it, and therefore the ancient history is covered in this book to demonstrate that "those people" have not been fighting "for thousands of years."
The book is broken up into three main sections. Part I addresses the background history of the region from the dawn of humankind to the final moments of the Ottoman Empire (early 1900s). Part II introduces the people involved in the conflict: the Palestinians and the European Jews who founded Zionism and eventually established the state of Israel. Part III discusses the actual conflict, from its earliest moments onward through to the current situation. No prior knowledge is assumed on the part of the reader. Moreover, questions I have repeatedly encountered at lectures have given me a base for what the reader might be wondering: What is the West Bank? Is (or was) Palestine a country? Is religion a factor? What is Zionism? Were the Jews or Arabs there first? I have tried to clarify these, while endeavoring to anticipate further curiosities and possible confusion. However, if I have overlooked something that you were hoping to have answered, or a topic I have discussed remains muddled, please tell me about it: gharms@gmail.com.
A word about balance and objectivity. The topic of Palestine-Israel generates suspicion about bias like none other. Accusations fly and tempers can flare over the slightest indication of a person or piece of writing leaning one way or the other: so-and-so is pro-Israeli, such-and-such a book is pro-Palestinian. For you the reader, I suggest making every effort to keep an open mind, avoid this trap of polarity, and read critically, starting with this book. The conflict is not a sporting event where people pick a side and root accordingly (though many do). It is a political conflict over which life is lost. As someone who is maybe new to the conflict, try to examine the history and come to an understanding of what is at stake, what the key issues are, and what could be done about it. "Objectivity" is a word that has practically lost its meaning, and has frequently come to mean imposing symmetry where things are not necessarily symmetrical, thus distorting the actual situation. I have sought to present the history of the conflict clearly and impartially. Regardless, however, of my efforts at handling sources critically and writing with caution, the reader will ultimately be the judge of my success.
I hope this new edition will continue to serve the needs of those readers returning from previous editions. For those picking it up for the first time I hope the book accommodates what Todd and I set out to provide. For both groups, may your curiosity and concern about the book's subject matter be sustained—and contagious.
NEW TO THE FOURTH EDITION
The years 2011 to 2016 have been incorporated into Chapter 10, which now includes the entirety of the Obama years. Among the added material is a revised discussion of the Arab Spring and the inclusion of: Operation Pillar of Defense (2012), John Kerry's diplomacy, Operation Protective Edge (2014), the spate of stabbings since 2015, the UN Security Council activity at the end of Obama's second term, and the Kerry principles. Chapters 1-9, aside from small alterations, in essence remain as they were in the previous edition. The appendices, namely, the Chronology and General Data, have all been brought up to date. And the Suggested Reading section has been revamped.
Gregory Harms
©2017 Gregory Harms