Israel's Place in the Middle East
A Pluralist Perspective
by Nissim Rejwan
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To many, Jews and Arabs stand in permanent opposition,
representing two clashing cultures, mentalities, and
temperaments. In this book, Nissim Rejwan maintains that this
perception is historically inaccurate. From the standpoint of
culture, ethnicity, and religion, he says, Israel is an integral
part of the Middle East.
As a nation Israel consists largely of Middle Eastern and North
African Jews, native-born Israelis of European origin, and Arabs.
Rejwan shows that peaceful and neighborly relations among these
groups have always prevailed and that the lot of the Jews has
been better in the realm of Islam than in the West.
Using Arabic, Hebrew, and English sources, the book traces the
course of Arab-Jewish relations from their beginnings in
pre-Islamic times to the present, and it offers a survey of
Judeo-Arabic culture and literature. It also describes the
ideological and cultural origins of Israel and demonstrates the
way these roots shape the country’s attitudes toward its
surroundings.
Nissim Rejwan is a research fellow at the Harry
S. Truman Research Institute for the Advancement of Peace, the
Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He is the author of:
The Many Faces of Islam: Perspectives on
a Resurgent Civilization (UPF, 2000),
Israel in Search of Identity:
Reading the Formative Years (UPF, 1999),
Arabs
Face the Modern World: Religious, Cultural, and Political
Responses to the West (UPF, 1998),
and The Jews of Iraq: 3,000 Years of History and Culture. He is currently writing his memoirs of Baghdad, where he was born and grew up.
1998. 224 pp. 6 X 9.
Notes, index.
ISBN 0-8130-1601-0Cloth, $55.00
ISBN 0-8130-1723-8
Paper, $19.95
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"'What are the prospects of Israel's becoming an integral part of the Middle East, of accepting its neighbors, and of being accepted by them?' asks Rejwan. He does not give us a clear answer, but he is one of the best people to take us on a quick tour d'horizon of what Arab intellectuals think about the idea." -- Jerusalem Post
"An important book. . . . No other is available in English with both the information and the perspective provided by Nissim Rejwan. . . . He sets out to demystify prevailing assumptions and attitudes regarding Israel’s geopolitical, historical and cultural relationship to Arabs, Islam, and the Middle East in general. He does so brilliantly. . . . Elegantly articulate."--Ammiel Alcalay, Queens College