Scars of War, Wounds of Peace : The Israeli-Arab Tragedy: The Israeli-Arab TragedyOxford University Press, USA, 2006 M02 6 - 368 páginas An Oxford-trained historian who became Israeli Foreign Minister, Shlomo Ben-Ami was a key figure in the Camp David negotiations and many other rounds of peace talks, public and secret, with Palestinian and Arab officials. He offers here an unflinching account of the Arab-Israeli conflict, informed by his firsthand knowledge of the major characters and events. Clear-eyed and unsparing, Ben-Ami traces the twists and turns of the Middle East conflict and the many missteps of the Israelis and Palestinians. The author paints particularly trenchant portraits of key figures from Ben-Gurion to Bill Clinton, and gives us behind-the-scenes accounts of the meetings in Oslo, Madrid, and Camp David. He is highly critical of Ariel Sharon and the late Yasser Arafat ("the sad embodiment of an archaic political orthodoxy devoid of a vision for the future"). He sees Arafat's rejection of Clinton's peace plan as a crime against the Palestinian people. The author is also critical of President Bush's Middle East policy ("a presumptuous grand strategy"). And along the way, Ben-Ami highlights the many blunders on both sides, describing for instance how the great victory of the Six Day War launched many Israelis on a misbegotten "messianic" dream of controlling all the Biblical Jewish lands, actually making the Palestinian problem much worse. In contrast, it has only been when Israel has suffered setbacks that it has made moves towards peace. The best hope for the region, he concludes, is to create an international mandate in the Palestinian territories that would lead to the implementation of Clinton's two-state peace parameters. Scars of War, Wounds of Peace is a major work of history--with by far the most fair and balanced critique of Israel ever to come from one of its key officials. It is an absolute must-read for everyone who wants to understand the dynamics of the Arab-Israeli conflict. |
Contenido
1 | |
Bisecting the Land or Zionisms Strategy of Phases? | 22 |
The Early Years A Missed Opportunity for Peace? | 49 |
The Rise and Fall of the Third Kingdom of Israel | 71 |
The Jewish Fear and Israels Mother of all Victories | 86 |
Sedanlaghen The Sin of Hubris and its Punishment | 115 |
Begins Capsule Theory and Sadats Separate Peace | 146 |
The Road to Madrid | 173 |
Oslo The Glory and the Agony | 201 |
The Barak Phase On Freedom and Innocence | 240 |
The Politics of Doomsday | 285 |
Conclusions | 312 |
Bibliography | 333 |
344 | |
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aftermath alliance American Arab armies Arab world Arab-Israeli conflict Arafat Ariel Sharon Assad Aviv Barak Begin Ben-Gurion borders British Camp David challenge Clinton compromise created deal defeat defence diplomatic disengagement economic Egyptian endorse Eretz-Israel Eshkol ethos eventually final settlement force Gaza Golan Heights Hamas Hebrew Hussein Intifada Iraq Islamic Israeli Israeli-Palestinian Jerusalem Jewish Jews Jordan Jordanian Judaea and Samaria land leadership Lebanon legitimacy major Menachem Middle East military Moshe Dayan Nasser national movement needed negotiations never option Oslo accords Palestine Palestinian Authority Palestinian national Palestinian problem pan-Arab parties peace agreement peace process peace with Israel peacemaking Peres political position President Prime Minister ready refugees regime regional rejected Resolution Sadat Sharett Sinai Six Day War solution Soviet Union strategic struggle summit superpower Syrian tactics territories terrorism threat throughout victory vital West Bank withdrawal Yishuv Yitzhak Rabin Yom Kippur Yom Kippur War Zionist