During the twentieth century Israel has achieved notoriety, witnessing almost constant conflict and violence. Drawing on his considerable experience as a historian, journalist and soldier, Ahron Bregman offers a masterly account of Israels wars with the Palestinians and the Arabs. From the 1947-8 Jewish Palestinian struggle for the possession and mastery of the land of Palestine, through Israel's wars with its Arab neighbours, to the Intifada between 1987 and 1993, this book unearths new insights and exposes secrets never previously published. Israels Wars, 1947-93 analyses the effect of the wars on the people of Israel. In the first decades, with the Holocaust fresh in their memories and fearing for their survival, Israelis demonstrated a great willingness to support and carry the burden of war high taxes and long military service as well as participating in the wars themselves. This book questions why from the late 1960s Israelis became more critical of their leadership, as well as the indifference to domestic problems created by the expense of war. Israel's Wars is a fascinating and informative history of this intriguing and difficult period of Israel's past.
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 2.5 / 5.0
This was more than a "somewhat biased" book:
I'll keep this short, as I'm not interested in getting into a debate about middle east politics. The author wrote a book that is in the classic modern leftist, anti-Israel mold. If you enjoy Al Jazeera or BBC accounts of Israel, you'll love this book. If you are interested in an even handed account of the history of Israel, this is not the book for you.
Somewhat Biased Account:
This brief work purports to cover the Arab-Israeli conflict from 1947 to 1993. The emphasis is not so much on the military as it is on the social and political aspects. The reader comes away with an all too brief and somewhat biased account of the conflict. The author, jewish himself, seems very anti-government in many of his views. This is interesting as until recently not many Israeli authors would dare find any fault with the heroic struggle of the Israeli state. Perhaps this is a sign that Israel has... more info
Somewhat 'selective' views on Israel's turbulent history.:
I bought this book (the most recent revised edition) in the context of furthering my studies in the Middle East and the Arab-Israeli conflict in particular. I also purchased the book due to the fact that the author is a former Israeli Army Captain, who served in the Operation 'Peace For Galilee' conflict in Lebanon of 1982.
Having a military history myself, I have always been prepared to listen to and indeed value the opinions of others with a service history, especially those who have engaged in... more info
