This book focuses on rapprochement and normalisation between Israel and some Arab countries within the context of global and regional geopolitics, bringing together broader perspectives on transformations resulting from this. The analysis is rooted in a historical and cultural construction of the region as an Islamic sphere viewing Israel as a perpetuation of the Western colonial project in the region. It analyses how this normalisation must not be treated as a novel phenomenon, but as a reconstruction of the past and continuity in tradition geared at regional stability, signifying a wider shift in the structure of the global international system. The first section addresses the international perspectives of the changing dynamics through the lens of US domestic politics, disengagement plans, China's increasing understanding of the geopolitics of the Abrahamic world. It equally pays enough attention to the attendant implications of this normalisation. The second section of the book explores the reflections of regional (state and non-state) actors, such as Turkey, Iran, Syria, Pakistan, and Hezbollah, and the catalysing effects of this normalisation within and beyond the region. The book is a rich resource for scholars of regional and international relations, in particular Middle East studies.

"For many in Israel and elsewhere, Benjamin Netanyahu is anathema, an embarrassment; yet he continues to dominate Israeli public life. How can we explain his rise, his hold on Israeli politics, and his outsized role on the world's stage? In Bibi, Anshel Pfeffer reveals the formative influence of Netanyahu's father and grandfather, who bequeathed to him a once-marginal brand of Zionism combining Jewish nationalism with religious traditionalism. In the Zionist enterprise, Netanyahu embodies the triumph of the underdogs over the secular liberals who founded the nation. Netanyahu's Israel is a hybrid of ancient phobia and high-tech hope; of tribalism and globalism - just like the man himself. We cannot understand Israel today without first understanding the man who leads it."--Publisher.

This book explains why the Israeli-Palestinian dispute is so difficult to resolve by showing that it consists of multiple distinct conflicts. Because these tend to be conflated into a single conflict, attempts at peace have not worked. Underpinned by conflict theory, observations of those involved and analyses of polling data, the book argues that peace will not be possible until each of the dispute's distinct conflicts are managed. Early chapters establish a theoretical framework to explain and define the different conflicts. This framework is then applied to the history of the dispute. The actions and perceptions of Israelis and Palestinians make sense when viewed through this framework. The Oslo peace process is examined in detail to explain how and why each side's expectations were not met. Ultimately, lessons in ways to build a future viable peace are drawn from the failures of the past.

From a long-time Guardian correspondent and editor, an expansive, authoritative, and balanced account of over a century of violent confrontation, war, and occupation in Palestine and Israel, published on the 100th anniversary of the Balfour Declaration and 50th anniversary of the Six-Day War In Enemies and Neighbors, Ian Black, who has spent over three decades covering events in the Middle East and is currently a fellow at the London School of Economics, offers a major new history of the Arab-Zionist conflict from 1917 to today, published on the centenary of the Balfour Declaration. Laying the historical groundwork in the final decades of the Ottoman Era, when the first Zionist settlers arrived in the Holy Land, Black draws on a wide range of sources--from declassified documents to oral histories to his own vivid on-the-ground reporting--to recreate the major milestones in the most polarizing conflict of the modern age from both sides. In the third year of World War I, the seed was planted for an inevitable clash: Jerusalem Governor Izzat Pasha surrendered to British troops and Foreign Secretary Lord Balfour issued a fateful document sympathizing with the establishment of "a national home for the Jewish people." The chronicle takes us through the Arab rebellion of the 1930s; the long shadow of the Nazi Holocaust; the war of 1948--culminating in Israel's independence and the Palestinian Nakba (catastrophe); the "cursed victory" of the Six-Day War of 1967 and the Palestinian re-awakening; the first and second Intifadas; the Oslo Accords; and other failed peace negotiations and continued violence up to 2017. Combining engaging narrative with historical and political analysis and cultural insights, Enemies and Neighbors is both an accessible overview and a fascinating investigation into the deeper truths of a history that continues to dominate Middle Eastern politics and diplomacy--one which has preserved Palestinians and Israelis as unequal enemies and neighbors, their conflict unresolved as prospects for a two-state solution have all but disappeared.

This open access book discusses the impact of protracted peace processes on identities in conflict. It is concerned with how lingering peace processes affect, in the long-term, patterns of othering in protracted conflicts, and how this relates with enduring violence. Taking Israel and Palestine as a case study, the book traces different representations of success and failure of the protracted peace process, as well as its associated policies, narratives, norms and practices, to analyze its impact on identity and its contribution to the maintenance and/or transformation of the cultural component of violence. On the one hand, drawing from an interdisciplinary approach comprising International Relations (IR), History and Social Psychology, this book proposes an analytical framework for assessing the specificities of the construction of identities in protracted conflicts. It identifies dehumanization and practices of reconciliation in ongoing conflicts - what is called peace-less reconciliation - as the main elements influencing processes of othering and violence in this kind of conflicts. On the other hand, the book offers an empirical historical analysis on how the protracted peace process has impacted identity building and representations made of the 'other' in the case of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict since the end of the 19th century to the present day.

First published in 1985, Israel and the Creation of a Palestinian State (now with a new preface by the author) analyses the reasons for the rejection of this solution by the protagonists. It then sets up a vision of a possible solution which, by taking account of the subjective fears and aspirations of the parties, may be regarded as more feasible.The author’s vision draws inspiration from the experience of reconstructing a new transnational order in Europe after the ravages of the Second World War. The underlying theme focuses on the limitations of the purely national context as a framework for resolving the current political problems of the Israeli-Palestinian dilemma.

This book describes the evolution of the Israeli-Palestinian peace-seeking process from 1967 to the present. Written from the perspective of Israel's most prominent peace activist, it offers an unparalleled insider's account of a crucial set of negotiations intended to settle a seemingly endless conflict. Hirschfeld's historical narrative provides a wealth of knowledge and experience that is indispensable to anyone seeking to seriously approach the Middle East conflict. The book's thorough analysis of the successes and failures of all peace efforts since the Six-Day War represents an essential asset for future negotiators, politicians, diplomats and peace activists alike. Moreover, the book shares pearls of human wisdom that anyone searching to resolve conflicts in general should take to heart. The book is of burning topicality. Not only with a view to the normalisation process between Israel and Arab countries that began with the recent Abraham Accords (2020) but also regarding the new "age of war" in Europe, sparked by Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine.

In The Legality of a Jewish State, the author traces the diplomatic history that led to the partition of Palestine in 1948 and the creation of Israel as a state. He argues that the fate of Palestine was not determined on the basis of principle, but by the failure of legality. In focusing on the lawyer-diplomats who pressed for and against a Jewish state at the United Nations, he offers an explanation of the effort in 1947-48 by Arab states at the UN to gain a legal opinion from the International Court of Justice about partition and the declaration of a Jewish state. Their arguments at that time may surprise a twenty-first-century reader, touching on issues that are still at the heart of the contemporary conflict in the Middle East.

This open access book examines security and protection within Israel and Palestine, analyzing national and international security strategies that apply to the protection of civilians. The author examines the principles, practices and the perception of protection.  Focusing on protection strategies and practices in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, this book reveals some of the myths and enigmas of national and international protection of civilians. The book moves beyond the current lack of protection strategies to discuss more effective human security focused on prioritizing protection of civilians, use of alternative tools such as community policing and inclusive protection.

This book assesses parliamentary speeches given by Arab representatives in the Israeli Knesset over the last 70 years, in order to throw light on the representation of political minorities. It examines several political 'identities' available to legislators with intersectional representation - including gender, religion and nationality - and considers the ways in which legislators utilise these various identities when representing their constituencies to further their political aims. The book also puts forward a new theoretical framework to better assess intersectional representation, especially in multi-national settings.

This book considers the growing interest in transitional justice practices that take place against the backdrop of ongoing settler-colonialism in Palestine. By critiquing the role of common top-down and bottom-up interventions, namely truth recovery and international criminal justice, the book argues that transitional justice acts as an extension of a deeply flawed peacebuilding process that has been so destructive in Palestine and has a deflating effect when it comes to advancing calls for meaningful decolonisation. A 'radicalisation' of transitional justice that takes place in settler-colonial contexts, one that prioritises conversations around meaningful decolonisation, is therefore required.

This book explains the historical roots of the conflict between Jews and Arabs, which has lost none of its explosiveness to the present day, in a comprehensive and easy-to-understand manner.  The question of who owns the Holy Land is more relevant today than ever. The debates on this topic are often characterized by ignorance and strong emotions, while partiality and power interests still obscure the view on the political situation in the Middle East.  Shaking up old myths and prejudices, this book presents an overall historical as well as political analysis of the Jewish, Christian, and Muslim structures, actors, and actions from the very beginning to this very day, as well as a topical analysis. It combines history with theology and political science.  Thus, the book is a must-read for scholars and students of political science, history, and international relations, as well as policy-makers, interested in a better understanding of the historical background and current political situation in the Middle East.