Israel's Holocaust and the Politics of Nationhood

‘Idith Zertal’s recent book, a path breaking analysis of how the memory of the Holocaust has been used in Israel not only to equate Palestinians with Nazis and justify the West Bank occupation and the building of settlements there but also to provide the rationale for nuclear weapons systems.’ Amos Elon, New York Review of Books ‘This is a brilliant and unsettling book that charts new, deeply submerged territories of the collective consciousness and sub-consciousness of Israeli society. The book is a major contribution to our understanding of the history of Israeli life and mentality.’ Shlomo Ben Ami, Emeritus Professor of Modern History, Tel Aviv University, and former foreign minister of Israel ‘The book is admirably perceptive, nuanced, and sophisticated … Dr Zertal is not a linear historian or mere chronicler of events. She is an intellectual and cultural historian of the highest distinction.’ Avi Shlaim, Professor of International Relations, University of Oxford ‘A moving and profound reflection on the role of mourning, death and victimhood in Israel.’ Henry Rousso, L’Express ‘Idith Zertal’s excellent book follows the history of the manipulation of the holocaust from the inception of Israel to the assassination of Prime Minster Yitzhad Rabin.’ Book Forum ‘… interesting and worthy of discussion …’ Birmingham Jewish Recorder ‘… can hardly be faulted on matters of detail and accuracy … Zertal successfully deconstructs a number of myths in recent Israeli historiography.’ Times Literary Supplement ‘Zertal successfully deconstructs a number of myths in recent Israeli historiography … and the young generation in Israel today will not have heard of many of the myths deconstructed with so much admirable gusto in this book’. The Times

Idith Zertal was for many years a cultural and political journalist and essayist in Israel. She is now teaching history and cultural studies at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. Her previous publications include From Catastrophe to Power (1998) and The Masters of the Land (2004).

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