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Cover of The Iron Wall by Avi Shlaim

The Iron Wall

  • 784 pages · about 13 hours
  • First published 2000
  • 12 editions

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1 About this book

'Fascinating... Shlaim presents compelling evidence for a revaluation of traditional Israeli history.' For this newly expanded edition, Avi Shlaim has added four chapters and an epilogue that address the prime ministerships from Barak to Netanyahu in the 'one book everyone should read for a concise history of Israel's relations with Arabs' (Independent).

What was promulgated as an 'iron-wall' strategy--building a position of unassailable strength--was meant to yield to a further stage where Israel would be strong enough to negotiate a satisfactory peace with its neighbors. The goal still remains elusive, if not even further away. This penetrating study brilliantly illuminates past progress and future prospects for peace in the Middle East.

Good for readers who want: history and a long read.

  • Arab-Israeli conflict
  • Middle east, foreign relations
  • History
  • World history
  • Palestinian Arabs
  • Military History
  • Foreign relations
  • Israel, foreign relations

2 About Avi Shlaim

Born 1948

Avi Shlaim (Hebrew: אבי שליים; Arabic: أفي شلايم; born 31 October 1945) is an Israeli and British historian of Iraqi Jewish descent. He is one of Israel's "New Historians", a group of Israeli scholars who put forward critical interpretations of the history of Zionism and Israel. Born in 1945, his family emigrated to Israel in 1951 during Operation Ezra and Nehemiah.

Bio adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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