Monday, June 6, 2016

The Middle East: A Brief History of the Last 2,000 Years by Bernard Lewis


The Middle East: A Brief History of the Last 2,000 Years


by Bernard Lewis

Bernard Lewis begins his remarkable survey of Middle Eastern history by conjuring up an ordinary coffee-house in a country like Turkey or Egypt or Iran. It's a commonplace scene - "men sitting at a table drinking a cup of coffee or tea, perhaps smoking a cigarette, reading a newspaper, playing a board game," with a radio or television playing in the corner.
Mr. Lewis then proceeds to deconstruct the major elements of this picture, in the process showing how its elements nearly all derive from the West. The coffee-house habitués wear Western-style clothes; the eyeglasses and watches on them were developed wholly in the West. Tables and chairs spread with colonialism, replacing cushions and hassocks. Tobacco comes from America. Newspapers come from Europe, of course, as does nearly all their content, from political coverage to the comics. The same goes for radio and television, including the musical programs. Only the coffee and the board games can boast local origins.
This coffee-house setting permits Mr. Lewis neatly to establish one of his book's major themes: to understand the Middle East today means comprehending the "rapid and enforced change" it endured under a Western onslaught that has now lasted for two centuries. And to see Western influence in context in turn requires a much deeper immersion into the Middle Eastern experience. That is precisely what Mr. Lewis then proceeds to offer the reader in a pathbreaking history of the Middle East's past two millennia.
In several ways, the Lewis version of this history improves on that offered by his predecessors. First, it starts not with the seventh century, when Islam originated, but goes the whole back to the time of Jesus. While acknowledging that "the advent of Islamic domination . . . clearly marked the beginning of a new society," the author takes pains to show continuities with the ancient Near East. This has the distinct virtue of placing Islamic history in context, rather than seeing it as an almost complete innovation.
Second, Mr. Lewis aspires to do more than recite names and dates; he hopes to convey something of the texture of Middle Eastern life. As the coffee-house vignette suggests, his is a thoroughly modern history, full of striking details and illustrative personalities. The necessary political narrative is there as history's backbone, but the social, economic, and cultural areas-precisely those most likely to intrigue the Western reader-flesh out the study. For example, Mr. Lewis succinctly notes a seemingly subtle difference in farming has profound implications: "In Western Europe, agriculture and stock raising have been closely associated, often, indeed, in the same hands. In the Middle East, there is an immemorial separation and conflict between the peasant and the nomad." Much of Middle Eastern history follows from this simple fact, including its political experience and its economic rhythms.
While some of his information will no doubt be familiar to a reader with basic knowledge of the Middle East, Mr. Lewis draws extensively on his own original research, insuring that much of his book will be novel even to the most practiced Middle East hand. More: A Brief History aspires to the sophistication found in histories of Europe and the United States - a noteworthy achievement given how thinly, compared to those regions, the Middle East has been studied.
Third, the author resists the small-minded orthodoxies of political correctness. Rather than take ritualistically blame European imperialism for the Middle East's current woes, he praises the brief era of Anglo-French domination of the Middle East as "an interlude of liberal economy and political freedom." Rather than accept the Middle East's current enthusiasm for fundamentalist Islam as a repudiation of Western ways, he looks below the surface and finds the region Westernizing despite itself: "the rejection of the West and its offerings is by no means as comprehensive and as undiscriminating as propaganda might indicate"; quite a few importations from the lands of unbelief, he notes, remain "very welcome."
Finally, the book is exceedingly well written. Recently dubbed "one of the great prose writers of the last fifty years," Mr. Lewis has a knack for the vignette, the turn of phrase, and the telling quotation; in addition, he unravels complex issues (such as the impact of French revolutionary ideas on the Middle East) so that one hardly notices their difficulty.
Looking to the future, Mr. Lewis sees the Middle East's two centuries under the Western thumb at an end and sees the region at the start of a new era. Foreign powers have recently made it clear that, at most, they will "act to defend their own interests, that is to say, markets and oil, and the interests of the international community," but not more. Overthrow Saddam Hussein? That's up to the Iraqis. Reconstruct Lebanon and Afghanistan? No thanks, not our business. For all that Middle Easterners continue to blame the West for their problems, he writes, they alone "can decide whether and how to use this window of opportunity while, in an interval of their troubled modern history, it remains open."
Mr. Lewis wrote his first published article in 1936. Now, on the eve of his 80th birthday later this month, he has written a fitting capstone to his long career, surveying with broad strokes so many of the topics he has previously written about in more detail. The reader can now benefit from this lifetime of study within the covers of a single book.


Some Milestones in Israel-Palestine dateline
Tags: ,,,,,,,
1834 - 1886 - 1920 - 1922 - 1929 - 1938 - 1941 - 1948 - 1950s-1960s - 1967 - 1970
1972 - 1973 - 1975 - 1976 - 1982 - 1987 - 1994 - 2000 - 2001 - 2005 - 2006 - 2007 - 2008 - 2010

1834
First recorded attack on native Jews in Israel by Muslims, is the one in June 1834, Safed (the Plunder), the massacres and mass rapes went on for 33 days, (an inciter, Muhammed Damoor, a self-proclaimed prophet, 'prophesied' the attack for which he agitated). It was repeated in 1838.
1886
First attack of Arabs on a Jewish settlement was in Petach Tikva (which was the first settlement in modern day Israel-Palestine), in the year 1886.
1920
Arabs attack Jews in Jerusalem & in Safed 1920-1921. Better known as "riots."
During the year, 142 pogroms and 36 lesser riots occur against the Jews. It was led due to incitement by the Mufti Haj Amin al-Husseini who began accumulating wealth and power.
1922
* Arab immigration into the historic homeland of the Jews started mainly in the 1800's, however an upsurge occurred since 1922 as Zionists changed the face of the deserted land.
* In 1922, as a continuing policy of appeasing the Arabs, 75% of the area of Palestine was taken away from the Jews and the Emirate of Transjordan was created, later to become Jordan. First the British, then the Arabs banned the entry of Jews from the area. This put those communities of Arabs in Transjordan and even the Judean desert who were of Jewish ancestry in an awkward position.
1929
First Arab on Jews massacre, in a clear attempt of annihilation was the Hebron massacre in 1929, incited by the Mufti al-Husseini who called to "Kill the Jews everywhere. This pleases Allah." that was the foundation of the Arab-Israeli conflict.
1938
Arabs massacre Jews in Tiberias.
The Tiberias (today part of the State of Israel) massacre took place on October 2, 1938 during the 1936–1939 Arab "revolt" in 'Palestine,' as they went from village to village, while shouting 'Death to the English.'
Arabs murdered twenty Jews --among them 11 children-- in Tiberias after infiltrating the Kiryat Shmuel settlement.
1941
The [non-Aryan, Arab] Mufti meets with Adolph Hitler (who considered the Arabs, an inferior monkey-type "race," yet managed to use him against the Jews) in 1941, his parties & youth groups in Palestine are fascist, [since 1936, existed Nazi type "storm troopers" with the youth's oath of: "Life -- my right; independence -- my aspiration; Arabism -- my country, and there is no room in it for any but Arabs. In this I believe and Allah is my witness."] he plots in his pact with the nazi leader, to massacre Jews on a big scale.
He agitates --in that year-- the Arabs, in Nazi oriented Iraq, to attack the Jews, many innocent Jews fall victims in the Farhud (pogrom in Baghdad), by the Arab-Islamic [Hitler-Youth group type] "futuwwa," led attack.
Later on, in 1943, he will lead a Nazi SS Muslim army [crimes against humanity, ethnic cleansing] against the Christian Serbs.
1948
* Arabs reject U.N. partition for a "two state solution," the Zionists, however, agree, for the first time in (around) 2,000 Years, a Jewish (albeit non-religious) leadership is in its historic place back again.
* First attempt by Arabs to 'eradicate' Israel, was right after its re-establishment (through the U.N.), in 1948. Five Arab armies attacked, with Azzam Pasha, the General Secretary of the Arab League, announcing ahead, "This will be a war of extermination, a momentous massacre, which will be spoken of like the Mongolian massacres and the Crusades."
* Arab leaders 'create' the Palestinian-refugee problem, by urging them to leave, as they are about to ethnic cleanse the land out of the Jews.
Ever since, these persecuted victims of Arabs, have been used as nothing but a toy, in Arabs' war against Israel.
1950's
1952 saw the first phenomenon in what now can be called terrorism, the 1950's 1960's Arab fidayeen raids against Israeli citizens & property.
1967
In 1967, Egypt's pan-Arab leader Nasser declared, a few days before the six days war, "Our main task is to destroy Israel." Syria's Assad: "It is time to embark on a war of annihilation." Cairo Radio announced: "All Egypt is now prepared to plunge into total war which will put an end to Israel."
The world is stunned at the miracle of tiny Israel pushing off Goliath Arab attack.
It also resulted in a knee-jerk resentment in the Arab world.
First era of the Arab immigrants (or their children) adopting the title "Palestinians" as an exclusive name (instead of plain Arabs or S. Syrians) was in 1967.
1970
Terrorism organized, among the highlighted first attacks is: The Avivim school bus massacre in 1970, which resulted in killing 12 (9 of whom were children), and wounding 24.
The chain of Arab-Islamic terror picks-up, with targeting Jews in the area or in the world.
*Jordan massacres thousands of Arab Palestinians (Y. Arafat claimed that Jordan killed between 10,000 to 25,000, in September 1970) creating turmoil, attacking the government, hijacking airlines, in 'Black September.'
The PLO is chased out of Jordan.
It will start stirring trouble in Lebanon, instead.
1972
The Olympics cold blooded massacre of Israel's sports team in Munich 1972 by Arab Palestinian terrorists, marked a turning point in getting the world's attention to Arab terrorism.
1973
The same sentiments of 'total annihilation of 1967' echoes in 1973, (like: "Throw the Jews into the sea.") the Yom Kippur war takes Israelis off guard, Israel suffers initially great losses but manages to regain it's control/win over the Arabs, again, withing the course of a few days.
1975
Racist Arabs' first campaign, of instilling in world's mind the idea that Zionism [which is about Jews' return to their homeland] should be regarded as "racism," in 1975, at the UN through the Arab nations' lobby, and forcing African nations (who many are 'slaves' to their market and power) to go along.
Ever since, the dreadful idea of shouting "racism" grew at any defensive action Israel ever takes against Arab racist attacks.
It relies heavily on an image that poor disadvantaged Arab-Palestinian is persecuted by a paler skinned Israeli.
Though, in reality, most Israelis are "brown," children of those being chased out by bigoted Arab countries since 1948.
Note: Today, in pluralistic multi-racial democratic Israel there are also a great number of black Ethiopian Jews, very visible in security employment. There are no Jews at all, inside Arab-Palestinian zones, if there's true ethnic cleansing in the area, it can be found in Arab-Palestine.
1976
Palestinians, Syrians and other Muslims, massacre Christians in Damour Lebanon, in a very Islamic spirit of "Allah hu Akbar!" and offering a "Holocaust to Muhammad." It draws a payback by the Christian Phalanges in 1982 in Sabra Shatila, that latter incident has been used in Arab anti-Israel propaganda to blame the Jews for Arab on Arab killings.
150,000 Christians were killed during the war with Muslims since 1975, the Arab Palestinians' fault in it, is major.
1982
After a long history of bloody attacks by Arab Palestinians based in Lebanon, Israel is forced to enter Lebanon ['Peace for the Galilee'] with an aim to destroy PLO's military capability.
Israel is [initially] welcomed by many in Lebanon as 'liberators,' as the Arab-Palestinians have been prompting more violence between Muslims and Christians.
Sadly enough, the Islamic Republic of Iran founds a militia "Party of Allah" Hezbollah, its goal, establishing a clearly Islamic (totalitarian, oppressive) Shia state in the entire area, with the eradication of Israel.
Hezbollah will use terrorism against Israel, and adopt a tactic of using human shields in order to cause civilian casualties, 18 Years later, a group of '4 Mothers' peace activists in Israel will force its government to withdraw from Lebanon.
1987
First Arab-Palestinian "intifada," throwing rocks at Israeli civilian cars, attacking Israeli civilians in all methods possible, the Arab-Muslim Palestinian children are being indoctrinated into a death cult of Jihadism and Shahidism.
The use of children in the war --human bombs and human shields-- is being picked-up. ['Arafat's children']
Palestinian propaganda becomes powerful, as adults shoot behind little children's shoulders, the TV picks up only the images of children throwing rocks VS Israeli soldiers firing back... a twisted around "David VS Goliath."
The official Arab-Palestinian TV incites to violence, it demonizes Jews as "animals."
Note:
Palestinians (like Hezbollah) "document" every defensive action by Israel, where the Arabs manage to cause civilian deaths, as "Israeli massacres."
1994
The Iranian arm 'Hezbollah' bombs the civilian Jewish center in Argentina [AMIA, the terror group also attacked the embassy in that country 2 years prior], massacring 85 and wounding 300.
The Iranian Imam Mohsen Rabbani says (in Argentina): "Israel must disappear from the face of the Earth."
The terror attack by Arab-Muslims on Jews in the diaspora, heightened the alert, internationally.
2000
Second Intifada.
A planned renewal of another wave of bloody violent Intifada was in place, an opportunity to "let it out" was when Sharon visited the Jewish temple mount, Muslims seized the opportunity to "protest" Sharon's visit in "their holy place."
Arafat now had a "perfect" title, in order to galvanize global Islamic support, his people named it the "Al Aqsa Intifada." The Al-Aqsa is of course the mosque, where Muslims build on top of the historic Jewish temple.
It was boosted up by a staged video, where an Arab boy Muhammad al-Dura --who as exposed later on as being-- shot by Arabs, was mistakenly pinned on Israel. Al-Dura becomes a symbol and an icon and motivates to more violence.
* The Ramallah brutal lynch of 2 Israelis who lost their way by Arab Palestinian masses and its police in public square, the sheer animalism of mutilating and "playing" with their body parts while screaming in inhuman ways, revealed the real face of mainstream Arab-Muslim Palestine.
The Italian cameramen who filmed the crime was threatened by Arafat's people.
(Suicide) Genocide bombings rise, targeting 'where civilians gather the most,' to kill as many unarmed Jews as possible.
A rise of the use of children, use of civilians tactics "succeeds" in making Israel look bad.
2001
* First vicious successful propaganda of adopting the slur "apartheid" to Israel's equal democratic state, it followed the above "racism" slur on Zionism.
Arab Palestinian Marwan Bishara published a book (in 2002) "Israel, peace or apartheid."
The idea behind it was/is to equate any understandable action by Israeli security as "racist" and de-legitimizing its existence just as S. Africa was at the apartheid (segregation between blacks & whites) era, while in fact, there's no separation between Jews and Arabs (who make upo 25% of equal citizens) in Israel, and Jews are required to get through check points just as Arabs do, security tactics are regional, where terrorism is more frequent, nothing "racial."
Not only are Arabs equal citizens in voting, being elected in government, but have often more rights than Israeli Jews, as they're exempt from military services without having an effect on their equal benefits as Israeli Jews have, there's also a policy of affirmative action to empower Arabs.
In 100% apartheid Arab-Palestine, no Jews are allowed to live in.
A major boost got the "apartheid" slur, through a (2006) book by Jimmy Carter with a title almost identical to M. Bishara's, who was always pro Arabism and pro Islamism on the expense of the west, including in Iran, and has been blamed for the change in that country towards the current oppressive Islamic Republic regime resulting in so many crimes on the millions of its citizens since 1979.
Even though, Jimmy Carter himself admitted on CNN (Dec, 12, 2006): "I recognize that Israel is a wonderful democracy with freedom of speech and equality of treatment under the law between Arab Israelis and Jewish Israelis." Yet he accepted Arab lobby's money to write that hate book.
* The demonization of Israel took an open antri-semitic tone at that infamous racist Arab control gathering in Durban in denouncing Zionism, the Arabs passed along anti Jewish hateful pamphlets at the United Nations.
* Ordinary Arab Palestinians show their true face of "humanity" by celebrating-- dancing, singing, giving out candies to children-- the 9/11 massacre upon 3,000 innocent people in the U.S.
2005
* Israel gives away Gaza to the Arab Palestinians, as it roots out Jews from their homes in a most dramatic (non violent) way, this causes not a moderation on the Arab side, on the contrary, Islamic Jihadi Hamas rises as "victorious", again, taking Israel's sacrifice for peace as "weakness."
* The patron of Hamas & Hezbollah, the Islamic Republic of Iran's president M. Ahmadinejad calls for Israel to be wiped off map, he also claims that he "denies" the holocaust and persues nuclear weapons.
In 2007, he said: 'Israel, US will soon die.'
2006
Hezbollah attacks Israel, it "improves" Palestinian tactics of using civilians, by firing rockets upon Israeli civilians (inside major Israeli cities/towns) from among populated density locations, then, cowardly escaping the area, causing Israelis to fire back. The intended Lebanese casualties cause an uproar in the Arab world, Hezbollah comes out as "heroes."
2007
Mainstream Arabs in Gaza go radical, vote for totalitarian Islamic party Hamas to become their "democratically elected government."
A major gathering follows, where thousands of Arab-Palestinians (with a Hamas spokesman) declare they want an Islamic Caliphate.
Christians, the tiny minority among the Arabs, who have been subject to persecution by the Islamic majority (Islamic apartheid?), especially since the reign of Y. Arafat, saw a major rise in oppression with the ascend of Hamas, a number of Christian institutions and members have been attacked or/and threatened.
Backgrounder:
Hamas has been involved in major anti Israel attacks, its charter calls for the destruction of Israel, its leaders often declare (including on "moderate" Fatah TV) their desire to annihilate Jews.
A 2007 Poll: 75% of (all) Palestinians do not think that Israel has the right to exist.
2008
After 8 years of firing missiles into Israel by Arab-Palestinian Hamas, especially targeting children (programmed at certain hours when they go to/leave school) in Sderot, Israel decided it had enough, it kicks off 'Cast lead.' Risking the lives of its soldiers in conducting operations against terrorists and weapons stock-piling inside Gaza, and warning the residents to evacuate (clear the way, and move to other areas) before hand. Yet, it was still condemned.
By now, Hamas is not shy in bragging of using children as human shields.
2010

Arab Muslim anti-Israel propaganda picks up steam, as the current motto is to "make Jews look bad" so they can justify their hatred and create the foundation for their intended ultimate goal of genocide.
A supposed "peace activism" designed to help the Hamas in Gaza who have been blockaded (afrer their continuous attacks on Israel's civilians, in order to stop their weapon smuggling) has been organizing "aid ships" heading to Gaza and confront Israeli security, one such ship, the Flotilla had a major success in damning Israel's image, after violently attacking the Israelis (who came aboard to check for weapons), 9 Muslims died, an uproar against Israel came about, later on, the true intentions of the Islamists on board were revealed, as they were filmed shouting: 'kill the Jews for Allah' and in an earlier defying radio exchange with the Israelis who warned them of entering Israeli territory the response from the Islamists aboard the ship was "Shut up! Go back to Auchwitz! We help the Arabs, Remember 9/11!"
There were also revelations that Islamists planned the entire event as "martyrdom."
The Flotilla was organized by the radical Islamic Turkish group IHH, tied to terrorism, Turkish president Mr. Erdogan who's representing the Islamic party, was looking for some time to break his country's alliance with Israel, he also objected to UN's sanctions aginst Iran for not complying with regards to its nuclear program.

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