Understanding the Arab-Israeli Conflict: What the Headlines Haven't Told You

Plot

This book provides a concise history of the origins and development of the Arab-Israeli conflict. Equal treatment is given to the period before the creation of Israel in 1948, namely, Arab society in the nineteenth century, the origins of Zionism, and the impact of Zionism on Palestinian Arabs before and after World War I. The first half of the book considers in detail the role played by British and French imperialism in these developments. The second half of the book examines the Arab-Israeli conflict in the light of the Cold War and the later emergence of the Palestinian national movement that culminated in the Israeli-Palestinian accord of 1993. Here extensive treatment is given to U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East. The major themes are those of competing and conflicting nationalisms, Palestinian Arab and Zionist/Israeli; conflicting states, Arab and Israel; and the role of outside powers in affecting developments in the region.