Israel/Palestine / Alan Dowty.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Dowty, Alan, 1940-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Arab-Israeli conflict.

Physical Description:

x, 269 pages : illustrations, maps ; 22 cm

Edition:

Second edition, Fully revised and updated.

Place of Publication:

Cambridge ; Malden, MA : Polity, 2008.

Summary:

What explains the peculiar intensity and intractability of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict? Of all the "hot spots" in the world today, the apparently endless clash between Jews and Arabs in the Middle East seems unique in its longevity and resistance to resolution. Is this conflict really different from other ethnic and nationalist confrontations, and if so, in what way? Alan Dowty demystifies the conflict by putting it in historical perspective, identifying its roots, and tracing its evolution up to the current impasse. His account offers a clear analytic framework for understanding transformations over time, and punctures the myth of an "age-old" conflict with an unbridgeable gap between the two sides. Rather than reciting historical detail, the book serves as a road map through the conflicting claims. This expanded and updated edition also includes a new chapter on the so-called "fourth stage" of the conflict. The opposed perspectives of the two sides with their concerns, hopes and passions are presented in full, leaving readers to make their own evaluations. It makes it clear why this conflict is waged with such vehemence - and why, for all that, there are some grounds for optimism.

Contents:

1 Introduction: Two Worlds Collide 1

Dispelling Myths 1

Defining the Conflict 4

The Setting: Ottoman Palestine 12

2 The Jewish Story 21

A Fossilized Relic? 21

The Theme of Persecution 27

"Come, Let Us Go" 31

Herzl and the Second Aliya 35

First Encounters 40

3 The Arab Story 45

The Glory of Islam 45

The Rise of the West 53

Palestine and Palestinism 58

First Encounters 61

The Debut of Arab Nationalism 65

4 The Emergence of Israel 69

The British Mandate 69

A Mischievous Pretence? 77

Holocaust and Partition 80

The War of Independence/An-Naqba: The Second Stage of the Conflict 86

Nasser and Nationalism 96

5 The Re-emergence of the Palestinians 105

The War that No One Wanted? 105

The Peculiar Legacy of 1967 110

The Decade of Sadat: Entering the Third Stage of the Conflict 116

The Lebanese Tangle 126

Shaking Things Up: The First Intifada 130

6 The First Pass at Peace 137

The Oslo Breakthrough 137

The Rocky Road to Peace 145

What Went Wrong? 150

The Roof Falls In 157

7 The Fourth Stage of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict 162

The End of the Arafat Era 162

Israel Turns to Unilateralism 168

A Turning Point: Ideology Prevails 178

8 The Impasse that Remains 187

The End of the Two-State Solution? 187

Territory and Settlements 194

Jerusalem 200

Security Issues 204

Refugees 208

A General Prognosis 213

9 The Perfect Conflict 219

Right against Right? 219

A Practical Solution 222

Building Foundations: Extremists and Illusions 225

Reflections 228.

Notes:

Previous ed.: 2005.

Includes bibliographical references (pages [241]-256) and index.

ISBN:

9780745642420

074564242X

0745642438

9780745642437

OCLC:

173499180