The three shots fired into the back of Israel's prime minister,
Yitzhak Rabin, on the night of November 4, 1995, were a blow to
Israel's social body. The shock, horror, and pain caused by the
murder found direct and overwhelming expression at the funeral and
memorial ceremonies held in Jerusalem, attended by most of the
world's leaders.
This book deals with the social and political developments in
Israel in the painful process of decolonization from the occupied
territories, following the late 1980s Palestinian Intifada and its
aftermath. Fifteen distinguished contributors from a range of
disciplinary viewpoints--historical, psychological,
anthropological, political, and cultural--survey the various
reactions to the assassination and analyze its ramifications and
repercussions, creating a powerful mosaic of Israel with the
assassination at its center.
The fear that the murder would lead to civil war did not
materialize. In fact, with hindsight it seems that the prime
minister was a scapegoat, a victim of a deeply divided society
split not only over the issue of peace with its neighbors but, more
profoundly, over the construction of Israel's collective identity
and consciousness. The assassination showed how easy it is for
religious fundamentalists to ignore democratic rules and how
militant nationalists will resort to violence to prevent the
surrender of parts of the Holy Land.
The strength of these elements of society was manifested in the
general elections of 1996, when Rabin's adherents lost to the
nationalist-clerical group. Paradoxically, the reaction to the
assassination also revealed Israel's growing desire to pursue the
peace process, and when Prime Minister Netanyahu failed to do so,
he was replaced before his term ended. Less than four years after
the assassination, the Israelis put the reigns of government back
into the hands of Rabin's successors, who promised to continue in
his path.
With the road to peace lengthy, painful, and hazardous, have the
fanatics learned a lesson from the aftermath of Rabin's murder?
Will he be the last victim? Will Israeli democracy survive the
agony of shrinking to the tiny size of the pre-1967 boundaries?
Will Israeli society develop into a Western democratic and
enlightened model, or will it become a reactionary, ethnocentric,
xenophobic backwater? This volume does not propose definitive
answers to these questions, but it reflects on them in very
thoughtful and knowledgeable ways.
General
Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate?
Let us know about it.
Does this product have an incorrect or missing image?
Send us a new image.
Is this product missing categories?
Add more categories.
Review This Product
No reviews yet - be the first to create one!
Welcome to Loot.co.za!
Sign in / Register |Wishlists & Gift Vouchers |Help | Advanced search
