Politics and government in Israel : the maturation of a modern state / Gregory S. Mahler.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Mahler, Gregory S., 1950-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Israel--Politics and government--20th century.

Israel.

Politics and government.

Israel--Social conditions--20th century.

Social conditions.

Physical Description:

xiv, 387 pages : illustrations, maps ; 24 cm

Edition:

Second edition.

Place of Publication:

Lanham, Md. : Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, [2011]

Summary:

This thorough and thoughtful text, now in a fully updated edition, explores Israeli government and politics from both institutional and behavioral perspectives. First tracing the history and development of the state, Gregory Mahler then examines the social, religious, economic, and cultural contexts within which Israeli politics takes place. He explains the operation of political institutions and behavior in Israeli domestic politics, including constitutions and ideology, parliamentary government, the prime minister and the Knesset, political parties and interest groups, the electoral process and voting behavior, and the machinery of government. Mahler considers Israel's foreign policy setting and apparatus, the Palestinian conflict and the question of Jerusalem, and the Middle East peace process overall. Clear and concise, his book provides an invaluable starting point for all readers needing a cogent introduction to contemporary Israel. Book jacket.

Contents:

What Do We Study? 1

How Do We Study Politics? 2

Studying Political Institutions and Behavior 4

Studying Israeli Government and Politics 5

Part I The Political Setting

1 History and the Creation of Israel 13

Historical Roots of Contemporary Israel 15

The Emergence of Zionism, 1830-1917 17

Growth of the Yishuv, 1880-1939 21

The Balfour Declaration and the British Mandate Period, 1917-1947 23

World War II and the Holocaust 33

Transition to Statehood, 1945-1948 34

The Palestinians 38

History and the Creation of Israel 43

For Further Reading 44

2 Zionism, Religion, and the Domestic Political Environment 47

The Concept of Zionism 48

The Religious Communities of Israel 55

Judaism in Israel 56

Religion and Politics-Jewish Issues 62

Israel's Non-Jewish Communities 69

Zionism, Religion, and the State 70

For Further Reading 71

3 The Social and Economic Context of Politics 73

Peoples of Israel 74

Ashkenazim and Sephardim 76

Immigration and Emigration 77

Social Class 80

Education and Culture 81

Health Care and Social Services 83

Cities, Villages, Kibbutzim, and Moshavim 85

The Economy 88

Foreign Economic Relations 90

The Political Culture and the Economy 91

For Further Reading 92

Part II The Governmental Institutions

4 The Constitutional System and Parliamentary Government 97

The Debate over Creating a Written Constitution 98

The Structures of the Israeli Constitution 102

The Role of the Courts in the Creation of a Constitution 106

Israel as a Parliamentary System 114

For Further Reading 116

5 The Prime Minister and the Knesset 117

The Setting 117

The Balance of Power 119

Legislation in the Knesset 121

The Members of Knesset 124

Legislative Behavior of Members of the Knesset 125

Knesset Organization 128

Coalition Politics and Coalition Governments 131

The Knesset, the Government, and Israeli Politics 138

For Further Reading 139

6 Political Parties and Interest Groups 141

The Setting 141

Ideology in Israel 143

The Functions of Parties 145

Parties and Issues 146

Interest Groups 155

For Further Reading 158

7 The Electoral Process and Voting Behavior 161

The Electoral System and Israeli Voting Behavior 162

Proportional Representation and Elections 162

Past Proposals for Electoral Change 171

The 1996-2001 Electoral System for Prime Minister 174

Voting Behavior and Electoral Results 175

Voting and Ideology 176

Ethnicity 177

Voting Trends 178

Significance of the Electoral Process for Israel 181

For Further Reading 183

8 The Machinery of Government 185

The Bureaucracy and the Civil Service 187

Local Government 191

The Judiciary and the Legal System in Israeli Politics 194

The Military and the Government 200

The Bureaucracy, the Judiciary, and the Military 202

For Further Reading 203

Part III Foreign Policy and the Middle Eastern Political Setting

9 The Foreign Policy Setting 207

The Setting: The Legacy of Warfare 208

Strategic Considerations 225

Military-Security Concerns 226

Political-Diplomatic Concerns 229

Economic-Developmental Concerns 233

Cultural-Status Concerns 234

The Foreign Policy Setting: A Recapitulation 234

For Further Reading 236

10 The Palestinians, the West Bank and Gaza, and Jerusalem 237

History 238

The Palestinians 240

Palestinian Statehood and Governance 244

Palestinian Goals 249

The West Bank and Gaza 250

Jerusalem 253

Israeli Attitudes, Intentions, and Policies 257

The Palestinians, the West Bank and Gaza, and Jerusalem 265

For Further Reading 266

11 The Peace Process 269

The Quest for Peace 269

Progress toward Peace, Post-1948 271

Progress toward Peace, Post-1956 272

Camp David and the Peace Process, 1978-1982 273

Israel's Peace Initiative, 1989 278

The Madrid Peace Conference, 1991 280

The Oslo Accords, 1993 282

The Wye River Memorandum, October 23, 1998 284

The Sharm el-Sheikh Memorandum, April 30, 2001 287

Bilateral Progress 293

The Copenhagen Track 298

The Quest for Peace, Again 300

For Further Reading 300.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9780742568273

074256827X

9780742568280

0742568288

9780742568297

0742568296

OCLC:

661185791