The solution to the problem has to be political action, not merely complaints about the past - but of course the politics is where the two authors tend to disagree the most. For Cohn-Sherbok, what Israel has done may not always be good - and he does criticize some policies and actions - but he regards them as necessary for national survival:
- "Yet what alternatives did Israel have? Surrounded by its foes, isolated from external support, the Jewish nation has continually sought to safeguard itself from aggression. But it has not been the aggressor in these conflicts. Rather, as a young and relatively tiny country, it has continually sought to defend itself from attack..."
El-Alami, however, disagrees very strenuously and looks forward to a time when Palestinians will be compensated for their suffering and loss of property. Indeed, Israeli efforts to get compensation and justice decades after the end of World War II establish a strong precedent for Palestinian claims. Unfortunately, he offers no direct answer for Cohn-Sherbok's question: what alternatives has Israel had?
Perhaps a lack of space would make an answer difficult, but saying something would have provided some constructive and useful criticism. It simply isn't enough to say that Israel has been wrong - it is necessary to provide alternatives that do not harm Palestinians but also ensure that Israel survives. Without such solutions, we might end up agreeing with El-Alami in the abstract, but we know that his perspective will not be implemented in reality.
True, he does advocate the creation of a Palestinian state - but so does Cohn-Sherbok, and quite strongly. But will that be enough? I'm not so sure, and neither is Cohn-Sherbok. For decades, Arab nations have used the Palestinian people and their plight as tools for their own political ends, and have seldom been interested in helping the Palestinians without ulterior motives. El-Alami seems to recognize this when he criticizes the Camp David peace agreement between Israel and Egypt, where the Palestinians were simply ignored.
In fact, the "Palestinian Issue" has only rarely been about the Palestinians anyway. Well, now it's time to pay them back. A Palestinian state will be very small and may not be economically viable. The currently high fertility rate means that there will be a larger and larger population seeking few jobs in a tiny region - thus leading to increasing numbers of disaffected young people. This is hardly a recipe for stability and peace.
Cohn-Sherbok recognizes the problems which will likely accompany a Palestinian state and offers a couple of suggestions which might alleviate them. One is the obvious recommendation that Arab nations work hard to provide Palestine with economic and political support. This won't be easy because most Arab nations are so poor already, but it is important try.
One possibility is something which he does not mention, and that is Arab nations standing side-by-side with Israel against terrorism. True, a lot of nice words about the evils of terrorism are spoken by political leaders, but that isn't enough: these leaders must crack down harshly on terrorists and quite literally put themselves in the line of fire right along with Israelis.
Another point which Cohn-Sherbok does bring up and which is much more controversial is the idea that neighboring countries provide land to a Palestinian state, thus making it larger and more likely to succeed. El-Alami certainly doesn't agree, but once again he doesn't offer any alternatives which might address Cohn-Sherbok's concerns. Perhaps this particular idea wouldn't really help - but it is different and does merit some consideration.
Ultimately, this book is both interesting and educational. Readers will learn about the history of Zionism, the creation of the state of Israel, and the impact upon the Arab peoples in the region. More importantly, readers will see these issues through the eyes of those who stand on both sides of the debate: Jewish and Muslim, Israeli and Palestinian. This is a very affordable book which provides an excellent, easy to understand introduction to what is a difficult and complex matter. If you, like so many others, want to learn more in order to comprehend what is going on but simply don't know where to start, this is the place.
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