Synopses & Reviews
Israel is a tiny country. From tip to toe, it stretches 260 miles long but is only 60 miles at its widest point. Since the days of the British mandate, the question of "defensible borders" for the Jewish state has always been problematic. Yet considering the larger picture of what has happened in the Middle East over the last 25 years--the peace treaties with Egypt and Jordan, the weakening of Syria as a result of the collapse of the USSR, the smashing of Iraq by the U.S--Israel is, militarily speaking, stronger than ever before. The greatest remaining threats are terrorism and guerilla warfare; and those, this book argues, are best dealt with territorial concessions. This is a compact, incisive study that is certain to draw attention.
Review
"A provocative, ruthlessly honest, and ultimately persuasive argument for reorienting basic Israeli defense policies. Advocating partition as the only viable solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, van Creveld believes that the future security of the Jewish state requires the pursuit of a distinctively Israeli variant of the Revolution in Military Affairs."- Professor Andrew J. Bacevich, author of
American Empire: The Realities and Consequences of U. S. Diplomacy
About the Author
Martin van Creveld was born in the Netherlands in 1946 and has lived in Israel from 1950. Having studied in Jerusalem and London, since 1971 he has been on the faculty of the History Department, the Hebrew University, Jerusalem. A specialist in military history and strategy, he is the author of 17 books, and has appeared regularly on CBS, CNN and the BBC.