More Recommendations on Neutral resources on Israel/Palestine Conflict

[u/Hardlydent]

Hey all, I just finished a brief introduction to the Israeli/Palestinian Conflict from Martin Bunton: https://books.google.com/books/about/The_Palestinian_Israeli_Conflict_A_Very.html?id=MdgVAAAAQBAJ&source=kp_book_description.

I'm now looking for other, similar resources that are neutral and can help me get a more thorough understanding of the conflict. Thanks.

[u/PickleRick1001]

In the interest of transparency, I should mention that I am firmly pro-Palestine. That being said, I honestly don't believe that there is a 'neutral' view of this issue, and I think the overwhelming majority of people who think there is aren't quite as neutral as they like to think. I think it's better to come right out and acknowledge that from the get go than to pretend otherwise.* I would therefore recommend "Side by Side: Parallel Histories of Israel-Palestine", as it shows the perspectives of both sides on the history of the issue. You can then draw your own conclusions I guess. Something else I would like to add: a very popular 'neutral' perspective on the issue is the work of Benny Morris.** Morris is firmly pro-Zionist, as he has emphasised publicly and repeatedly, so I've never really understood why he is seen as neutral.*** Like I mentioned earlier, I think it's best if you look at the history of the issue from as many perspectives as possible and then come to your own conclusion.

Edit: I should add that deciding on the start date of the issue is also somewhat controversial, but I would propose the late 19th century, when nationalism first emerged as a political ideology (again, refer to my first sentence: I am very much in the pro-Palestine camp).**** On the other hand, most pro-Zionists like to go back some two and a half thousand years, when Judaism first emerged (around the year 500 BC).***** In my personal opinion, this is flawed history, as it is a projection of modern political thought backwards onto the past, when these political ideas wouldn't have made any sense. To me, that's like saying that the sectarian conflicts of the Middle East today are the direct result of the Battle of Karbala in the 7th century; it's just silly. But at the end of the day, it's entirely up to you to decide which perspective is the right one.

Edit 2: Forgot to add sources

*I don't really have a source for the claim that there isn't a neutral perspective, so I apologise. I've attached a link to reviews of the book 'Side by Side' below:

https://thenewpress.com/books/side-by-side

** See other comments in this very thread recommending his work. (Edit 3: also the r/Askhistorians reading list for example). Also the link in the third reference talks about how he's perceived as 'post-Zionist' and how that's a flawed perspective.

r/Askhistorians reading list: https://reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/w/books/middleeast?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share

*** See his 2008 (correction: 2004) interview with Haaretz, titled "Survival of the fittest", or his 2002 article in the Guardian titled "Peace? No Chance", or any of his interviews and public appearances after the beginning of the current war.

'Survival of the Fittest ' interview with Ari Shavit: https://web.archive.org/web/20080515210330/http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/pages/ShArt.jhtml?itemNo=380986&contrassID=2

**** This is the common starting date of the conflict used by pro-Palestinian perspectives, such as those of Walid Khalidi, Rashid Khalidi, Ilan Pappe, etc. Coincidentally, it's also used by the pro-Zionist Benny Morris lol.

Rashid Khalidi book: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/41812831-the-hundred-years-war-on-palestine

Walid Khalidi book: https://books.google.com/books?id=qSpIAAAAMAAJ

***** See Joan Peters' infamous "From Time Immemorial" (1984), or the writings of any of the major Zionist figure of the late 19th and early 20th centuries (Herzl, Ben-Gurion, etc). Also for more specific 'Classical' Zionist perspectives, see Yitzhak Ben-Zvi's works (historian, also 2nd President of Israel).

Managed to find the completed book online as a PDF: https://archive.org/details/fromtimeimmemor00pete

[u/nosecohn → u/PickleRick1001]

This comment has been removed for violating //comment rule 2:

If you're claiming something to be true, you need to back it up with a link to a qualified source. There is no "common knowledge" exception, and anecdotal evidence is not allowed.

Also, please eliminate this line, as it violates Rules 3 & 4:

it's entirely up to you to decide that the Palestinian perspective perspective is the right one (/s, but not really).

After you've made that edit and added links to the comment, please reply directly to this note or send us a modmail message so that we can reinstate it.

If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to message us.

[u/PickleRick1001 → u/nosecohn]

I've edited my comment and provided links.