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Noah Flug and Martin Schäuble recount The History of the Israelis and Palestinians in the young adult book of the same name. Theirs is quite an ambitious undertaking. The conflict in the Middle East, which, in all of its complexities, is even difficult for adults to understand, is here rendered clearly and vividly for young readers. The authors’ use of eye-witness accounts, quoting both Palestinian and Israeli citizens at length, makes the subject even more accessible. Ultimately, the book is not aimed at just young adults. It is for anyone who would like a cogent survey of the entire context of the conflict.
The authors proceed chronologically. “From ancient times to the Palestinian uprisings of 1936 to 1939 – a short overview” is the name of the first chapter. It begins with the frequently asked question that is ostensibly the key to solving the conflict over the Holy Land: Who lived there first? Noah Flug and Martin Schäuble reject this question on the grounds that it can “hardly be answered conclusively” and is, moreover, essentially the “wrong question” since the land was populated before there were even clear definitions of who “Palestinians” and “Israelis” were. The authors thus demonstrate how irrelevant the question really is. In the following 13 chapters they trace the most important developments of the conflict that has “raged in the area for 3000 years”.
The starting point of this concise and easy-to-follow history is the year 1000 B.C. when the region was controlled by Israeli clans under the kings Saul, David and Salamo who were contending with the Philistines. Since the authors concentrate on only the essential facts, they follow up this discussion with the premises and concept of Zionism formulated by Theodor Herzl in 1897. Flug and Schäuble thus provide their readers with the necessary background information to understand the current conflict. Other essential information is also treated in this chapter, such as Jerusalem’s vital role as the holy site for all three monotheistic world religions – Christianity, Islam and Judaism.
Readers are then able to comprehend why at the beginning of the 20th century Palestine, then under Ottoman rule, became the refuge for Jews around the world. Conversely, the growing resistance to Jewish immigration, which rose sharply after 1933, is depicted lucidly and with understanding. Especially at the outset of the mass immigration, many Palestinian big-business owners sold their estates at considerable prices to the incoming Jews. This explains how a majority of the land ended up in Jewish hands – a fact that would later become highly contentious for various Islamic resistance groups. For in their view, the Palestinian land is a “waqf”, inalienable public property, and, as such, forms the basis of their refusal to acknowledge the state of Israel since it was founded on that very same land.
In 1915, Great Britain, which received a mandate to oversee the Palestinian territories in 1920, had already promised the Arabs their own state in their fight against the Ottoman Empire. However, in the Balfour Declaration in 1918, the British government also agrees to support the Jews in the creation of a “Jewish homeland”. As a result, various conflicts arise: Arab resistance groups go on strike against the Jewish immigrants in Palestine, who, however, soon become important allies of the British occupying forces intent on maintaining stability in the region. Yet in efforts to keep the peace, the British government is forced to limit the surging Jewish immigration – even in the 1940s as the situation had become life-threatening for Jews throughout almost all of Europe.
The establishment of internment camps for Jewish refugees and the creation of an underground resistance act to escalate the conflict – and ultimately force the British to capitulate and hand over the region to the United Nations. The 1947 Partition Plan for the region, which provides for a largely Palestinian northern section and a Jewish southern one, leads to the foundation of the state of Israel and is also the basis for the alliance of the Palestinians with the Arab nations. In the first Arab-Israeli war, Arab states invade the recently founded Israel. By now, the conflict is set in stone, the fronts clear: the western world is on Israel’s side, while the Arabian nations largely support the Palestinians.
In portraying this ongoing conflict, the authors of The History of the Israelis and Palestinians do not restrict themselves merely to listing facts. Instead, they provide all the background information necessary for a firm understanding of the lasting confrontation. One of the book’s greatest strengths is that it enables readers to follow the motives of all parties involved. For example, the individual interests of the nations which voted for the founding of Israel at the U.N. general assembly are presented convincingly and, in spite of the complex subject, succinctly. The authors’ ability to place the events in the Middle East within a global, political context is likewise laudable.
Noah Flug and Martin Schäuble lead their readers with assurance through all the important stations of the Middle East conflict: the Jordanian occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem, Jordan’s water supply project, the Suez Crisis, as well as the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories following the Six-Day War in 1967. The authors’ efforts to let both sides have their say is striking. Flug and Schäuble skillfully interweave their history with a great deal of eye-witness accounts, living testimonies which illustrate that, more than anything else, the conflict results in the suffering of both Palestinian and Israeli people.
By incorporating individual lives into the narrative, the Middle East conflict becomes more palpable for readers. Inquisitive young adults are provided with a vivid introduction to the subject, and yet even adult readers will enjoy the precise account of such a complex issue. The extensive index also proves to be very helpful. The authors include a concise timeline and valuable maps which supplement the reading, as well as a wealth of tips for further reading. Readers are thereby encouraged to learn more about specific issues and delve deeper into the subject.
Eva Kaufmann
Juli 2008
[Translated by Franklin Bolsillo Mares]
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