Unexpected State: British Politics and the Creation of Israel (Middle East Studies) - Softcover

Beckerman, Carly

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0253046416 ISBN 13: 9780253046413

Publisher: Indiana University Press, 2020

Synopsis

Cutting through assumptions about Britain's support for a "national home for the Jewish people" in the creation of British Palestine, Carly Beckerman explores why and how elite political battles in London inadvertently laid the foundations for the establishment of the State of Israel. Drawing on foreign policy analysis and previously unused archival sources, Unexpected State considers the strategic interests, the high-stakes international diplomacy, and the tangle of political maneuvering in Westminster that determined the future of Palestine. Contrary to established literature, Beckerman argues that British policy toward the territory was dominated by seemingly unrelated domestic and international political battles that left little room for considerations of Zionist or Palestinian interests and arguments. Beckerman instead shows how the policy process was aimed at resolving issues such as coalition feuds, party leadership battles, spending cuts, and riots in India. Considering detailed analysis of four major policy-making episodes between 1920 and 1948, Unexpected State interrogates key Israeli and Palestinian narratives and provides fresh insight into the motives and decisions behind policies that would have global implications for decades to come.

About this title

About the Author

Carly Beckerman is Assistant Professor in the School of Government and International Affairs at Durham University.

Edition details

• Publisher: Indiana University Press
• Publication date: 2020
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0253046416
• ISBN 13: 9780253046413
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 224