The Making of the Arab-Israeli Conflict, 1947-1951 (2025 Edition)

Ilan Pappé
Paperback, 344 pages
Revised Edition, 2025
9780755651221

This seminal text by renowned Israeli historian, Ilan Pappe, discusses one of the most significant periods in the Arab-Israeli conflict. Based on archival material, it presents the reader with a comprehensive and general history of the origins and consequences of the 1948 war.

While among Arabs, and especially Palestinians, the events of that year are known as the nakba - the catastrophe, the trauma, the disaster - for Jews, and in particular for Israelis, their victory in the war of 1948 is a veritable miracle. For them, against tremendous odds and through heroic military effort, the Jewish community succeeded in thwarting attempts by the Arab states to destroy it.

Pappe shows here that in sharp contrast to the recollections and myths of both sides, the military events of 1948 were not decisive. The victory of the Zionist organization and the fate of the Palestinians was determined by politicians on both sides - in the discussions and decisions of the United Nations in 1947-8 and in the Arab League - long before a shot had been fired. He argues that Israel's failure to take advantage of the genuine opportunity for peace with the Arabs at the UN-sponsored Lausanne Conference in 1949 resulted in the prolonged and tragic conflict between Israel and the Arab states still very much alive today. Complete with a new foreword by the author, the book remains the authority on the subject for a new generation of readers.

Contents
1: The Diplomatic Battle
2: The Civil War in Palestine
3: The Making of the Refugee Problem
4: The Arab World Goes to War, or Does it?
5: Seeking a Comprehensive Peace
6: The Complete Takeover and the Israeli Struggle against Bernadotte's Legacy
7: The Armistice Agreements
8: From Mediatiion to Conciliation : The Establishment of the Palestine Conciliation Commission
9: The Lausanne Conference
10: The Final Quest for Peace