Arafat's War

Advertisements
Advertisements

4 min read

FacebookTwitterLinkedInPrintFriendlyShare

A well argued, fast-paced, and engaging book offers an authoritative and provocative portrait of one of the most controversial leaders of the 20th century.

Yasser Arafat and the Palestinian leadership never really intended to reach
a two-state solution, says London-based professor Efraim Karsh in his
recently released Arafat's War: The Man and His Battle for Israeli Conquest
(Grove Press, October 2003). All along, Arafat and his associates have been
openly stating their "phased strategy" for Israel's destruction; we have
been too blinded by hopes for peace to hear what they said.

Arafat's War offers an authoritative and provocative portrait of one of the
most controversial leaders of the 20th century, and along the way proves the
adage, "Once a terrorist, always a terrorist." For this is the real Arafat
exposed, with his relentless crusade for the destruction of Israel.

The book, offering in parallel a biography of the Egyptian-born
"Palestinian" leader and a comprehensive account of the collapse of the Oslo
peace process, is meticulously documented, referring extensively to
Palestinian leaders and media as its sources. The nearly 30 pages of
notes at the book's end could possibly have been more effective if they were
presented alongside Karsh's compulsively readable and well-researched work.

Presenting an account of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and peace process
in chronological order, the book explores how the Palestinians under
Arafat's leadership refused to renounce their eventual goal of Israel's
destruction, how they bolstered their terrorist infrastructure and glorified
the armed struggle, and created a hate and contempt for Israeli people.

Was Yasser Arafat ever serious about peace? "For Arafat... the Oslo process
has always been a strategic means not to a two-state solution... but to the
substitution of a Palestinian state for that of Israel," Karsh says. Acting
on the PLO's 1974 "phased strategy," Arafat endeavored to take whatever
territory was surrendered by Israel, and then use it as a springboard for
further territorial gains until achieving the "complete liberation of
Palestine."

Why did Arafat reject Israel's peace offer at Camp David? "Arafat could not,
and would not" accept the end of the conflict, Karsh says. "There was
absolutely no way for Arafat to peacefully sign away the conflict without
attaining the destruction of the State of Israel, through its withdrawal to
indefensible borders and its flooding with millions of Palestinian refugees
in accordance with the 'right of return.'"

Exposed and documented for the reader is Arafat's duplicity, how he tells
the international audience in English one thing, and then says something
altogether different in Arabic to his supporters. Arafat condemns the
Dolphinarium suicide bombing only due to European pressure, but sends a
letter to the bomber's family praising the "heroic martyrdom operation."
Arafat blames another suicide bombing on then-IDF chief of staff Shaul Mofaz
and tells UN envoy Terje Roed-Larson that the Mossad ordered the Karine A
weapons shipment, which was actually bound for Hizbullah in Lebanon and not
to Arafat's Palestinian forces.

Arafat's War is distinguished from other writings on the topic, says Daniel Pipes, author of Militant Islam Reaches America and director of the Middle East Forum, because Karsh's "sprightly, fact-filled and insightful review of the Palestinian leader's life presents him as he really is: 'a bloodthirsty terrorist with no respect for human
lives, impervious to his own people's needs and aspirations, and absolutely
committed to Israel's destruction.'" This book will help the reader
"understand the Arab war against Israel," Pipes writes.

Efraim Karsh is professor and head of Mediterranean Studies at King's
College, University of London, and is the author of several books, including
Saddam Hussein: A Political Biography and Empires of the Sand: The Struggle
for Mastery in the Middle East 1789-1923.

This article original appeared on Israel Insider.

Click here to order "Arafat's War: The Man and His Battle for Israeli Conquest"
by Efraim Karsh

Click here to comment on this article
guest
0 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
EXPLORE
LEARN
MORE
Explore
Learn
Resources
Next Steps
About
Donate
Menu
Languages
Menu
oo
Social
.