A History of Modern Israel

498 Pages·2013·5.65 MB·English

by  Shindler, Colin

more information - www.cambridge.org/9781107028623

A HISTORY OF MODERN ISRAEL
SecondEdition
ColinShindler’sremarkablehistorybeginsin1948,aswavesofimmi-
grantsarrivedinIsraelfromwar-tornEuropetoestablishnewcities,
newinstitutionsandanewculturefoundedontheHebrewlanguage.
Optimistic beginnings were soon replaced with the sobering reality
of wars with Arab neighbours, internal ideological differences and
anongoingconfrontationwiththePalestinians.Theauthorpaintsa
broad canvas thataffordsunusualinsightsinto Israel’s multicultural
society,forgedfrommorethan100differentJewishcommunitiesand
unitedbyacommonhistory.Inthisupdatededition,Shindlercovers
the significant developments of the last decade, including the rise
of the Israeli far Right, Hamas’s takeover and the political rivalry
between Gaza and the West Bank, Israel’s uneasy dealings with the
new administration in the United States, political Islam, the expan-
sion of the Jewish settlements on the West Bank and the potential
impactoftheArabSpringontheregionasawhole.Thissympathetic
yetcandidportrayalaskshowanationthatemergedoutoftheashesof
theHolocaustandwastheadmirationoftheworldisnowperceived
bymanyWesterngovernmentsinalessthanbenevolentlight.
colin shindler isEmeritusProfessorandPearsSeniorResearch
Fellow at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of
London.HeisalsofoundingchairmanoftheEuropeanAssociation
ofIsraelStudies.
InMemoryof
RachelShindler(1905–96)
and
GoldiePollock(1919–2003)
A HISTORY OF
MODERN ISRAEL
Second Edition
COLIN SHINDLER
SchoolofOrientalandAfricanStudies,UniversityofLondon
cambridge university press
Cambridge,NewYork,Melbourne,Madrid,CapeTown,
Singapore,Sa˜oPaulo,Delhi,MexicoCity
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Informationonthistitle:www.cambridge.org/9781107671775
(cid:2)C ColinShindler2008,2013
Thispublicationisincopyright.Subjecttostatutoryexception
andtotheprovisionsofrelevantcollectivelicensingagreements,
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permissionofCambridgeUniversityPress.
Firsteditionpublished2008
Secondeditionpublished2013
PrintedintheUnitedStatesofAmerica
AcatalogrecordforthispublicationisavailablefromtheBritishLibrary.
LibraryofCongressCataloginginPublicationdata
Shindler,Colin,1946–
AhistoryofmodernIsrael/ColinShindler.–2nded.
p. cm.
Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex.
isbn978-1-107-02862-3(hardback)–isbn978-1-107-67177-5(pbk.)
1.Israel–History. I.Title.
ds126.5.s45194 2012
956.9405–dc23 2012021356
isbn978-1-107-02862-3Hardback
isbn978-1-107-67177-5Paperback
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Contents
Illustrations pageviii
Maps x
Acknowledgements xi
Glossaries xiii
Chronology xxvii
Prefacetothesecondedition:Towards2020 xxxiii
Introduction 1
1 Zionismandsecurity 10
10
Zionismbeyonddemonization
23
Theneedforsecurity
30
JewishsocialismandArabnationalism
2 TheHebrewrepublic 38
38
Theendofempire
Defeatandvictoryin1948 43
49
Exileandreturn
3 Newimmigrantsandfirstelections 54
54
Thesurvivors
62
JewishimmigrationintoPalestine
65
Thefirstelections
70
ThedominanceofMapai
4 Thepoliticsofpiety 78
78
Thebalancingact
85
WhoisaJew?
91
ThearrivaloftheSephardim
5 Retaliationorself-restraint 98
98
Ben-Gurion,SharettandDayan
102
Thedevelopingschism
v
vi Contents
108
Nasser’smetamorphosis
109
Stalin’sembrace
112
ThereturnofBen-Gurion
114
Thesearchforarms
119
TheroadtoSuez
6 TheriseoftheRight 123
123
TheSixDaywar
125
DestroyingMapaifromwithin
130
Outoftheunderground
134
Theideologyofoccupation
141
JudeaandSamaria
7 TheroadtoBeirut 147
147
MenachemBegin’sleadership
150
WhoarethePalestinians?
156
Therealityofnegotiations
165
Amoreradicalhue
8 Dissentathomeandabroad 175
175
Theendofconsensus
181
Thepeacecamp
186
Traditionaldiasporaopinions
191
Anewassertivegeneration
9 Aninsurrectionbeforeahandshake 198
198
ThemanfromLehi
201
AnewpathforthePalestinians
203
TheoutbreakoftheIntifada
207
AnIsraeliawakening
211
Thefallandriseofideology
213
ConstrainingthePrimeMinister
220
FromKuwaittoMadrid
10 Theendofideology? 227
227
Theproblemsolver
232
TheOslobreakthrough
236
ThePLOincrisis
11 ThekillingofaPrimeMinister 244
244
Thereturnoftherejectionists
255
TheRight’sbacklash
262
Rabbisandayatollahs
12 Themagicianandthebulldozer 267
267
ThevirtualandtherealLikud
Contents vii
275
AreturntoCampDavid
281
Alongwalktodisaster
284
Thedescentintotheabyss
13 ‘Hedoesnotstopattheredlight’ 289
2001:ASharonodyssey 289
298
ThePalestinianstrugglewithin
307
Islamismascending
314
DisengagementfromGaza
14 Anunlikelygrandfather 321
321
Ideologyandevacuation
325
SeparatingfromthePalestinians
330
Betweenpragmatismandideology
335
Olmert’sarrivalandHamas’sascent
341
TheriseofHezbollah
15 Abrotherlyconflict 350
350
TheaftermathoftheLebanonwar
354
ThetakingofGaza
359
ASyrianbomb?
362
Teheranandthemissilewar
16 Bialik’sbequest? 368
368
Thecalmbeforethestorm
372
OperationCastLead
380
Goldstoneinthequagmire
17 Stagnationandisolationism 388
388
Blockadesandflotillas
393
Settlersandsettlements
400
DitheringintheWhiteHouse?
18 AnArabSpringandanIsraeliwinter? 405
405
Adownwardspiral?
410
IsraelandtheArabSpring
417
Anunknownfuture
Bibliography 421
Index 427
Illustrations
1.1 A.Vilkovsky,amemberoftheKharkovBiluim,1885 page18
1.2 KibbutzMerchavia,1911 20
1.3 ThedepartureoftheBritishHighCommissioner,Sir
JohnChancellor,fromPalestine,2September1931 30
2.1 MosheDayanandAbdullahalTaldiscusstheframework
foraceasefire,Jerusalem,1948 51
3.1 JewishrefugeesfromtheHolocaust,withtheYellowStar
ofDavidontheirbacks,1945 61
3.2 VotinginNazarethinthefirstIsraelielections,January
1949 66
4.1 DavidBen-GurionspeaksataMapaielectionrally,
Jerusalem,January1949 82
5.1 MosheSharettaddressesaMapaielectionmeeting,
Jerusalem,January1949 101
5.2 MosheDayanexplainstheIsraelimilitarycampaignin
Sinaitojournalists,November1956 120
6.1 VladimirJabotinskyopensthethirdWorldConferenceof
BetarintheTeatrNowosci,Warsaw,September1938 131
6.2 YitzhakTabenkin,c.1960s 136
7.1 MenachemBeginpresentstheCampDavidagreementto
theKnesset,1978.AscepticalYitzhakShamir,theKnesset
speaker,lookson 163
7.2 JewishsettlersattempttopreventIsraelisoldiersfrom
evacuatingYamit,1982 164
8.1 PeaceNowprotestagainstSharonduringtheLebanon
war,1982 180
8.2 EthiopianimmigrantsinsideanairforceC130enrouteto
IsraelduringOperationSolomon,1991 192
9.1 Israelifamilywearinggasmasksinthesealedroomin
theirhomeduringthefirstGulfwar,1991 221
viii