Refuting the Anti-Israel Narrative

In recent decades, Israel has come under sustained diplomatic pressure from the West. According to the press and the policy establishment, she acts aggressively and with disregard for civilian lives in pursuit of an unnecessary and illegal occupation of Palestinian territory. Others view the country as an embarrassing outpost of colonialism, racism and apartheid whose actions—and those of the “pro–Israel lobby”—have provoked a fiery Islamist backlash.
This book refutes these misrepresentations, showing that Israel’s actions are well within the norms of international law and morality, and arguing that the country—far from being a deviant state—is a bastion of Western values. The author offers a nuanced narrative, outlining the legal, moral and historical justice behind Jewish statehood and discussing the reasons behind the failed peace process in recent years.

Journalist Jeremy Havardi’s articles have appeared in The Guardian, The Commentator, The Jewish News, Times of Israel and many other publications. He lives in London, England.

Jeremy Havardi
Format: softcover (7 x 10)
Pages: 280
Bibliographic Info: notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2016
pISBN: 978-0-7864-9881-9
eISBN: 978-1-4766-2297-2
Imprint: McFarland

Table of Contents


Preface 1

Introduction: State of Play Today 5

Part I: The Twisted Narrative

1. Israel the “Law Breaker”: Occupation, Settlements, War and Refugees 19

2. The Calumnies of the Radical Left: Israel as a Genocidal, Racist, Apartheid and Colonialist State 51

3. The Myth of the “All Conquering” Zionist Lobby 73

4. Nailing the Grand Lie: Why Israel Is Not the Cause of Radical Islam’s War Against the West 87

Part II: Changing the Narrative

5. The Jewish Historical, Legal and Moral Right to the State of Israel 121

6. The Actual Cause of the 90-Year Conflict: Arab and Palestinian Rejection and Western Appeasement 147

7. Israel Is an Invaluable Asset to the West 189

8. Changing the Narrative: Turning on the Accusers 206

Conclusion 233

Chapter Notes 243

Bibliography 261

Index 267

“extensively research…highly readable”—The Jewish Chronicle.