Israel’s Palestinians
The Conflict Within

This timely book explores the causes and consequences of the growing conflict between Israel's Jewish majority and its Palestinian-Arab minority.

Ilan Peleg (Author), Dov Waxman (Author)

9780521157025, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 30 May 2011

272 pages, 5 b/w illus.
22.9 x 15.3 x 1.6 cm, 0.37 kg

'Ilan Peleg and Dov Waxman are liberal Zionists who believe that Israel's Arabs have been treated shabbily and who see big trouble ahead if something significant isn't done to change the way Israel - the state and the society - relates to them. Their academic (though not overly so) book attempts to summarize the current state of affairs and how it came to be, but also looks to solutions, proposing a path toward greater autonomy and equality for the Arabs that wouldn't require Israel to relinquish its definition as the homeland of the Jews.' David B. Green, Haaretz

Arguing that a comprehensive and lasting solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict depends on a resolution of the Jewish-Palestinian conflict within Israel as much as it does on resolving the conflict between Israel and Palestinians in the Occupied Territories, this timely book explores the causes and consequences of the growing conflict between Israel's Jewish majority and its Palestinian-Arab minority. It warns that if Jewish-Arab relations in Israel continue to deteriorate, this will pose a serious threat to the stability of Israel, to the quality of Israeli democracy and to the potential for peace in the Middle East. The book examines the views and attitudes of both the Palestinian minority and the Jewish majority, as well as the Israeli state's historic approach to its Arab citizens. Drawing upon the experience of other states with national minorities, the authors put forward specific proposals for safeguarding and enhancing the rights of the Palestinian minority while maintaining the country's Jewish identity.

Introduction: the other Palestinian problem
Part I. The Conflict Within: 1. Palestinians in Israel: separate and unequal
2. Palestinian politics in a Jewish state
3. A radicalized minority?
4. The Jewish majority and the Arab 'other'
Part II. Managing the Conflict: 5. The formation of the Jewish Republic
6. Alternatives to ethnic hegemony
7. Neither ethnocracy nor binationalism: seeking the middle ground
8. Israel's challenge: moving from hegemony to equality
Conclusion: a comprehensive resolution of the Palestinian problem.

Subject Areas: Political control & freedoms [JPV], Comparative politics [JPB], Politics & government [JP], Middle Eastern history [HBJF1], Peace studies & conflict resolution [GTJ]