Myths and Facts: A Guide to the Arab-Israel Conflict [Paperback]

 

 

Create your own review

This book is excellent in many ways. It is easy to read and reference, and does a good job shattering many myths that have, over generations, cast Israel in an unfair light. Many of these myths are simply created by Arab and liberal medias and hold absolutely no truth.

One important myth he exposes is the one that America always blindly takes Israel's side. Bard points out several examples where, by U.N. vote and other means, America has very blatantly NOT sided with Israel.

Another important fact he details has to do with weapons sales. Bard shows that U.S. weapons sales to Israel didn't even begin, nor increase, until parallel weapons sales to surrounding Arab countries by way of France, Germany, and Russia, began to flourish rapidly. Most of the airplanes Israel destroyed in Egypt's air force during the 1967 war were Russian MiGs and French Mirages.

This book is definately one-sided from the Israeli perspective, but still a very informative read if you're looking to strengthen your arguments. Two things I didn't like besides the one-sidedness though...one, Bard is not a moderate. He defends even the most controversial of Israeli actions, to include extremeists' settlements in the West Bank. He refuses to see this as part of the current problem, nor is he (unlike a vast majority of Israelis) willing to compromise for peace. Two, he refuses to admit that Israel has ever done anything wrong during it's entire history, to include the bombing of the USS Liberty. Every military action that can be questioned as either poorly judged or heavy handed, he either defends to the death or makes up excuses for. Dude, nobody's perfect, and no military will ever fight a war without terrible, if unintended, side effects. A humble admittance of error with assurances at future prevention goes a lot farther than self-righteous denial.

I'm a supporter of Israel and I think they have every right to act not only in their security, but in their self-interest. But nobody is an angel. I love America too, but refusing to admit we've done some shady things in the past is nothing more than lying to myself. We make mistakes, we learn from them, and we move on.

For a much deeper, evenhanded look at Middle East conflicts, read "Israel's Wars" by Aaron Bregman.

This valuable reference work deals with the myths and disinformation surrounding Israel, Zionism, the history of the area from about 1860, the various wars, Arab and Jewish refugees, the role of the United Nations and several other subjects relating to the Middle East. The book - of which a constantly updated version is online - presents the myths and then demolishes them backed by references to verifiable sources.

The chapters include Israel's Roots, The Mandatory Period, Partition, The War of 1948, The 1967 War, Between the Wars, The War of Attrition, The Yom Kippur War, Boundaries, The Gulf Wars, The United Nations, The Refugees, Human Rights in Arab Countries and in Israel and the Territories, Jerusalem, US Middle East Policies, The Arms Balance and The Media.

Among the topics discussed are the Balfour Declaration of 1917, the slanderous accusation of Zionism as racism, Jewish immigration to the area, the number of Arab states besides Egypt and Syria who were involved in the 1973 Yom Kippur War, the shameful record of the United Nations in condemning Israel, and the vile Anti-Jewish rhetoric of the UN. The role of the notorious Haj Amin Al-Husseini, Mufti of Jerusalem, and his dalliance with Nazi Germany is also covered. Each myth and its refutation by the facts are backed by copious notes and references.

One of the most interesting things I learnt is that in the early 20th century, certain influential Arabs welcomed Jewish immigration to the land, like Dawood Barakat, the editor of the Egyptian paper Al-Ahram, in 1913, and Sherif Hussein, guardian of the Islamic Holy Places in Arabia.

This contrasts sharply with the quotes in the chapter Arab/Muslim Attitudes Toward Israel, under the headings Anti-Semitism, Fabrication Of Abuses, Holocaust Denial, Phased Plan & the Destruction of Israel, and Sanctioning Violence.

These quotes, from Arab leaders, sermons of preachers, columnists in the mainstream press, high officials, academics, Palestinian Christian clerics, and Palestinian Authority spokespeople and officials, include direct calls for the destruction of Israel and the murder of Jews, to praise for Hitler, despicably racist remarks about Jews, holocaust denial and the threat of nuclear attack.

These words, intended for local consumption, are rarely reported in the Western media. Quite clearly there is a type of psychosis at work here, a hatred irrational beyond comprehension. Anyone who believed that Israel's neighbours really want peace will come to the opposite conclusion after perusing these chilling, heartless and despicable utterances.

There is an Index Of Myths, Key Documents including The Balfour Declaration, The Hebron Protocol, The Peace treaty between Israel and Egypt, various United Nations Security Council Resolutions and other info like Israeli statistics on life expectancy, US assistance to and trade with Israel, and economic indicators. This book is absolutely essential for understanding the history and the present situation in the Middle East.

For further information and related matters, I recommend The Case For Israel by Dershowitz, The Mountains Of Israel by Norma Archbold Parrish, Inside The Asylum by Jed Babbin, Eurabia by Bat Ye'or, The Nazi Connection To Islamic Terrorism by Chuck Morse, The Israelis by Donna Rosenthal and The Anti-Chomsky Reader, edited by Horowitz and Collier.

Bard offers a concise guide to the reality of the Arab-Israeli conflict, with particular focus on things often left out of the propanganda. Here are a smatering of facts offered and myths dismissed:

*Israel continues to be the only country where Arab men and women are allowed to speak freely and vote in free and fair elections for candidates of thier own choice.

*The Arabs insist Israel give up the territory won in the 1967 war for a Palestinian State, without ever mentioning that Jordan and Egypt controlled these territories from '48-'67 without making a single move to give the Palestinians a country.

*Syria and Lebannon herd Palestinians into camps, denying them citizenship or the right to own property in order to win propaganda points.

*The Palestinians continue to reject Israel's offers to abandon the Gaza Strip and 95% of the West Bank in exchange for peace.

*The Arab war on Israel predates the ocupation of the west bank and gaza by almost two decades.

*During the 19 years of Jordanian rule of Jerusalem not a single Arab leader took the time to visit this so-called holy city.

*Unlike Israel, which defends all holy sites, the Jordanians detroyed 2000 year old Jewish cemeteries in Jerusalem, and the Palestinian Authority continues to destroy Jewish holy sites like Jacob's Tomb.

Everyone interested in the Middle East should first become aware of these facts. Bards book cuts through the porpaganda giving the reader a view of the reality of the region and its history.

Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review

› See all 5 customer reviews on Amazon.ca

 

5.0 out of 5 stars An EXCELLENT simple book to clear up the many myths
This is a clearly written FACT filled book that presents a myth or commen misconception about the arab-israel conflict and then presents the facts about the case, in this way it... Read more

Published on Jan 31 2003

5.0 out of 5 stars A good, factual account
I found the book very useful for beginners and novices to the moderately well educated on Israeli and Middle eastern affairs. Read more

Published on Aug 13 2002

Search Customer Reviews
Only search this product's reviews

› See all 5 customer reviews on Amazon.ca

Search Listmania!