Israel's Border Wars, 1949-1956 (arab Infiltration, Israeli Retaliation, And The Countdown To The Suez War)

By (author) Morris, Benny
Short description/annotation:
Looks at the development of Israeli-Arab relations during the formative years 1949 to 1956, focusing on Arab infiltration into Israel and Israeli retaliation. The study aims to deepen understanding of the current situation in the Middle East and of the prospects for a lasting peace there.
Description:
This book looks at the development of Israeli-Arab relations during the formative years 1949 to 1956, focusing on Arab infiltration into Israel and Israeli retaliation. Palestinian refugee raiding and cross-border attacks by Egyptian-controlled irregulars and commandos were a core phenomenon during this period and one of the chief causes of Israel''s invasion of Sinai and the Gaza strip, the Israeli part of the Anglo-French-Israeli invasion of Egypt in 1956. Benny Morris probes the types of Arab infiltration and the attitude of Arab governments towards the phenomenon, and traces the evolution of Israel''s defensive and offensive responses. He analyses Israeli decision-making processes, including the emergence and ultimate failure of Foreign Minister Moshe Sharett''s dissident policy of moderation and describes in detail the history of the Arab infiltration, including the terrorist-guerrilla raids by state-organized Fedayeen in 1955-6, and of the IDF raids of Qibya, Nahhalin, Kinneret, and the Sabha. This was a precedent-setting period in the making of Israeli defence policy, and this pattern of raiding and counter-raiding served to define Israeli-Arab relations during the subsequent three to four decades. In this pioneering study Benny Morris deepens our understanding of the current situation in the Middle East and of the prospects for a lasting peace there.
Table of contents:
1. Israel, the Arab States, and the Palestinians after the 1948 War ; 2. Infiltration ; 3. Arab Attitudes and Policies Towards Infiltration, 1949-55 ; 4. The Costs of Infiltration ; 5. The Israeli Defensive Responses to Infiltration ; 6. The Beginning of the Retaliatory Policy ; 7. Raiding and Counter-Raiding, 1951-1953 ; 8. Qibya ; 9. Israel, the Arab States, and the Great Powers, 1952-1956 ; 10. Sharett''s Year, 1954 ; 11. The Gaza Raid and After ; 12. Countdown to a War ; Afterword: The Sinai/Suez War and the End of the Gaza Fedayeen ; Conclusion ; Biographical Notes
Review quote:
On the author''s previous book, 1948 and After: `Benny Morris continues to enrich the field of knowledge encompassing Israel''s violent origins ... [he is] the pre-eminent researcher in the field'' Political Studies
Promotional headline:
The first detailed study of a formative era
Review quote: previous edition:
`Meticulously researched, well written, and based primarily on achival sources.'' Small Wars and Insurgencies `A fuller, more nuanced and more convincing picture emerges from this book than from any previous account of the endless chain of action and reaction which culminated in the tripartite attack on Egypt in 1956'' London Review of Books `this work with its extensive quotations from documents, wide-ranging research, and immaculate presentation, is an invaluable contribution to the literature of the origins of the Arab-Israeli wars'' The International History Review `The factual parts of this important book are innovative in their focus; impeccable in their research, proof, and presentation; systematic in their organization; and revealing in their wealth of details.'' International Journal of Middle East Studies `Morris has been steadily escalating his writing style. This trend is already visible in his 1948 and After, a recycling of several published essays designed to complement his earlier work on the Palestinian refugee problem.'' Political Studies