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Osprey Essential Histories #28
The Arab-Israeli Conflict: The 1948 War
This book discusses the origins of this military encounter and traces its route through two the guerrilla warfare between the Arab and Jewish communities of Palestine and the conventional interstate war between the state of Israel and the invading Arab armies. It looks at the participants, their war aims, their strategies, and their combat performance.
96 pages, Library Binding
First published August 19, 2002
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185 people want to read
About the author
Efraim Karsh
64 books30 followersEfraim Karsh is director of the Middle East Forum, editor of the Middle East Quarterly, and Professor of Middle East and Mediterranean Studies at King's College London.
Born and raised in Israel, Mr. Karsh earned his undergraduate degree in Arabic language and literature and modern Middle Eastern history from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem and his graduate and doctoral degrees in international relations from Tel Aviv University. After acquiring his first academic degree, he served for seven years as an intelligence officer in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), where he attained the rank of major.
Prior to coming to King's in 1989, Mr. Karsh held various academic posts at Columbia University, the Sorbonne, the London School of Economics, Helsinki University, the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London, the Kennan Institute for Advanced Russian Studies in Washington D.C., and the Jaffee Center for Strategic Studies at Tel-Aviv University. In 2003 he was the first Nahshon Visiting Professor in Israel Studies at Harvard.
Mr. Karsh has published extensively on the Middle East, strategic and military affairs, and European neutrality. He is the author of fifteen books, including Palestine Betrayed (Yale); Islamic Imperialism: A History (Yale); Empires of the Sand: the Struggle for Mastery in the Middle East 1798-1923 (Harvard); Fabricating Israeli History: The "New Historians" (Routledge); The Gulf Conflict 1990-1991 (Princeton); Saddam Hussein (Free Press); Arafat's War (Grove); and Neutrality and Small States (Routledge).
Mr. Karsh has appeared as a commentator on all the main British and American television networks and has contributed over 100 articles to leading newspapers and magazines, including Commentary, The Daily Telegraph, The International Herald Tribune, The London Times, The Los Angeles Times, The New Republic, The New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal.
He has served on many academic and professional boards; has acted as referee for numerous scholarly journals, publishers, and grant awarding organizations; has consulted the British Ministry of Defence and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, as well as national and international economic companies/organizations; and has briefed several parliamentary committees. A recent CENTCOM directory of Centers of Excellence on the Middle East ranked Mr. Karsh as the fifth highly quoted academic among 20 top published authors on the Middle East, with his articles quoted three times as often as the best of the four non-American scholars on the list.
He is founding editor of the scholarly journal Israel Affairs, now in its sixteenth year, and founding general editor of a Routledge book series on Israeli History, Politics and Society.
(meforum.org)
Born and raised in Israel, Mr. Karsh earned his undergraduate degree in Arabic language and literature and modern Middle Eastern history from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem and his graduate and doctoral degrees in international relations from Tel Aviv University. After acquiring his first academic degree, he served for seven years as an intelligence officer in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), where he attained the rank of major.
Prior to coming to King's in 1989, Mr. Karsh held various academic posts at Columbia University, the Sorbonne, the London School of Economics, Helsinki University, the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London, the Kennan Institute for Advanced Russian Studies in Washington D.C., and the Jaffee Center for Strategic Studies at Tel-Aviv University. In 2003 he was the first Nahshon Visiting Professor in Israel Studies at Harvard.
Mr. Karsh has published extensively on the Middle East, strategic and military affairs, and European neutrality. He is the author of fifteen books, including Palestine Betrayed (Yale); Islamic Imperialism: A History (Yale); Empires of the Sand: the Struggle for Mastery in the Middle East 1798-1923 (Harvard); Fabricating Israeli History: The "New Historians" (Routledge); The Gulf Conflict 1990-1991 (Princeton); Saddam Hussein (Free Press); Arafat's War (Grove); and Neutrality and Small States (Routledge).
Mr. Karsh has appeared as a commentator on all the main British and American television networks and has contributed over 100 articles to leading newspapers and magazines, including Commentary, The Daily Telegraph, The International Herald Tribune, The London Times, The Los Angeles Times, The New Republic, The New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal.
He has served on many academic and professional boards; has acted as referee for numerous scholarly journals, publishers, and grant awarding organizations; has consulted the British Ministry of Defence and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, as well as national and international economic companies/organizations; and has briefed several parliamentary committees. A recent CENTCOM directory of Centers of Excellence on the Middle East ranked Mr. Karsh as the fifth highly quoted academic among 20 top published authors on the Middle East, with his articles quoted three times as often as the best of the four non-American scholars on the list.
He is founding editor of the scholarly journal Israel Affairs, now in its sixteenth year, and founding general editor of a Routledge book series on Israeli History, Politics and Society.
(meforum.org)
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
December 20, 2016
I read this book after reading the first chapter of Iron Wall by Avi Shlaim, which gave a better big picture idea of the war, though now looked to be a very partial view of things. This book, on the other hand, appears to side the Jews. By focusing on military details of the Palestine War, which got quite confusing to me, it showed that at ground level, the situation then was a lot more complex. The Arabs were on the offensive, violently rejecting the Partition Resolution of 1947. The Israeli had to respond in order to survive attack from all their bordering neighbours. Miraculously, the war ended with the Jewish state stretching over a greater territory than was first assigned to them. The last chapter that discusses the birth of the Palestinian refugee problem was enlightening to me. This concise book served well as a single puzzle piece in my own quest to understand the Aracb-Isreali conflict.
December 25, 2014
Need for the writer to 're-write the book.
The book is too one sided to be a story or historical accounts of events. The first few accounts showed how biased the writer was. Please re-write and give correct accounts. For after reading the first few pages I could guess the nation of the writer... this is a very very poor book
The book is too one sided to be a story or historical accounts of events. The first few accounts showed how biased the writer was. Please re-write and give correct accounts. For after reading the first few pages I could guess the nation of the writer... this is a very very poor book
January 5, 2015
Disappointingly parochial.
June 29, 2011
A useful book, clearly written, very concise -- almost too concise really -- but I only gave it three stars since it didn't quite give me what I was looking for -- its main focus is on the military history, ie the history of the battles between Arabs and Jews from the late 1930s through the invasion of all the Arab armies after the Jews accepted the two-state partition and declared independence in May 1948 -- then through the year-plus of war through the truces. My interest is in more large-scale matters rather than the details of each battle, in ideas and ideologies and diplomacy -- it was useful in sketching the origin of the "refugee" problem (blame for which Karsh argues belongs almost entirely on the Arabs themselves, offering documented details about the flights ....) -- but I would have liked more details about that rather than the battles ....
June 3, 2017
A brief, yet informative piece for those looking for a fairly thorough overview of not just the war, but of the lead-up and aftermath. The writing is clear and not onerous in the least. The subject matter appears to well researched and quite objectively portrayed. My only gripe is the occasional interjection of previous events that can confuse the present timeline of events. I do feel this book is a bit too brief to cover this topic sufficiently and it has made me want to do further reading.
If you are looking for a solid, brief primer to the immediate creation of the state of Israel and its first battle survival, this book will start you off well.
If you are looking for a solid, brief primer to the immediate creation of the state of Israel and its first battle survival, this book will start you off well.
January 21, 2018
Terrible terrible book
Some Osprey's are half-decent, this one is not
Some Osprey's are half-decent, this one is not
December 28, 2023
A quick read, mostly focused on the military aspects of the 1948 conflict. While it did get a little hard to read, I thought the author did a great job reeling the reader back in with short historical accounts/statements from people fighting, fleeing, and reacting to both. Comprehensive and decently explained history on the event.
November 19, 2023
Testo che ripercorre dettagliatamente tutte le prime fasi del conflitto (47-49). Necessario approfondire la questione per gli ulteriori sviluppi. Dettagliato e preciso.
April 20, 2025
An insight into the conflict that made the state of Israel "possible" ... very well documented and overall interesting.
December 7, 2018
Admittedly, although Israel's history is definitely something of great personal interest to me, I do not consider myself to be particularly knowledgeable when it comes to the 1948 war that preceded and immediately followed Israel's independence when the grossly outnumbered Israeli population, with all of its geographic liabilities and logistical shortages, managed to become a regional power by defeating both internal and external enemies. The story is a powerful one, and not everyone reading this book is going to enjoy it, especially those who want to believe in a long-time identity when it comes to the Palestinian people. Ultimately, this book seeks to demonstrate that the suffering of the Palestinians is as a result of their leaders who inflamed anti-Jewish tension in the period before the war and bungled the conflict with Israeli Jews as well as other nations who sought to increase their hold over parts of Israel's territory and refused to integrate refugees into their society, thus establishing the Palestinian identity where no such nation had existed before during the times of Ottoman rule or British mandatory authority. The historical record is not kind to the Arabs here, and the author manages to include a great deal of detail that makes this a very worthwhile guide.
In less than 100 pages, the author manages to do a very excellent job at writing about the war from beginning to end. He begins with an introduction and a chronology to set the context. He looks at the background of war, and the burden of the long history of Islam and Judaism and their interaction in the Holy Land. After that there is a dispassionate look at the strengths and weaknesses of the two sides at the beginning of the conflict and the outbreak of war because of the intransigence of the Arabs in refusing partition and the recognition of a Jewish state. The author looks at the fighting and the transition from inter-communal strife between Jews and Arabs to interstate warfare between Israel and its neighbors. There is a look at Ariel Sharon as a trapped soldier, the opinion of world leaders concerning the war, the portrait of a citizen leaving Jerusalem in the aftermath of the Arab defeat, and the conclusion and consequences of the war in perpetuating the Arab-Israeli conflict in succeeding decades. All in all, the book does a good job at looking at capabilities, difficulties, and the achievements and failures of both armies.
By and large, the Arab leaders do not come off well here. The consequences of defeat were pretty heavy, in that Syria and Egypt suffered mightily for their losses in this war and their leadership changed dramatically as a result of the David and Goliath encounter that they lost. Far from pushing the Jews into the sea or enacting a "final solution" as had been their intent (and as likely remains the intent of all too many on the Arab side), the war led to an expansion of Jewish territory and the flight of many Arabs because their ineffectual leaders were unwilling to live under Jewish rule and test the Jewish commitment to justice and equality. As a result, the Palestinian population suffered, but not thanks to Jewish oppression, but the failures of their leaders and especially the failure of neighboring nations to seek their well-being as part of their political calculations. The book gives a poignant look at the common people on all sides and on the repercussions that lasted long after the war itself in the desire of Israel for peace and a recognition of its borders and legitimacy and the seething desire for vengeance on the part of those who were defeated in 1948.
In less than 100 pages, the author manages to do a very excellent job at writing about the war from beginning to end. He begins with an introduction and a chronology to set the context. He looks at the background of war, and the burden of the long history of Islam and Judaism and their interaction in the Holy Land. After that there is a dispassionate look at the strengths and weaknesses of the two sides at the beginning of the conflict and the outbreak of war because of the intransigence of the Arabs in refusing partition and the recognition of a Jewish state. The author looks at the fighting and the transition from inter-communal strife between Jews and Arabs to interstate warfare between Israel and its neighbors. There is a look at Ariel Sharon as a trapped soldier, the opinion of world leaders concerning the war, the portrait of a citizen leaving Jerusalem in the aftermath of the Arab defeat, and the conclusion and consequences of the war in perpetuating the Arab-Israeli conflict in succeeding decades. All in all, the book does a good job at looking at capabilities, difficulties, and the achievements and failures of both armies.
By and large, the Arab leaders do not come off well here. The consequences of defeat were pretty heavy, in that Syria and Egypt suffered mightily for their losses in this war and their leadership changed dramatically as a result of the David and Goliath encounter that they lost. Far from pushing the Jews into the sea or enacting a "final solution" as had been their intent (and as likely remains the intent of all too many on the Arab side), the war led to an expansion of Jewish territory and the flight of many Arabs because their ineffectual leaders were unwilling to live under Jewish rule and test the Jewish commitment to justice and equality. As a result, the Palestinian population suffered, but not thanks to Jewish oppression, but the failures of their leaders and especially the failure of neighboring nations to seek their well-being as part of their political calculations. The book gives a poignant look at the common people on all sides and on the repercussions that lasted long after the war itself in the desire of Israel for peace and a recognition of its borders and legitimacy and the seething desire for vengeance on the part of those who were defeated in 1948.
March 26, 2015
Hotararea Organizatiei Natiunilor Unite de imparti teritoriul palestinian in doua state independente, unul arab si unul evreu, a reprezentat nu doar imboldul de care viitorul stat Israel se va folosi in proclamarea independentei, ci si semnalul pentru un lung sir de razboie care au marcat ultimele decenii. Minutioasa si evocatoare, interpretarea pe care Efraim Karsh o da conflictelor arabo-israeliene din 1948 reprezinta nu doar atractiva lectie de istorie recenta, ci si o invitatie la cunoasterea genezei unui conflict care n-a incet pana astazi sa influenteze relatiile internationale si evolutiile din Orientul Apropiat.
April 1, 2011
A good "cliff-notes version" of the war between arabs and jews in Palestine. A little disappointed there was no mention of the Altalena Affair, the SS Exodus Affair, the Acre Prison break or the blowing up of the King David Hotel. Book was clearly written from a pro-jewish point of view . . . but then history is written by victors - and since there's evidence that the arab media proclaimed victory after victory in 1948 - even when faced with catastrophic defeat - I'll take what I can get. Overall, I recommend this book.
February 15, 2016
While clear in some ways and definitely a decent little book about a complicated subject, the background section leaves something to be desired in terms of the multi-year build-up prior to the eruption of full hostilities. And, while I really enjoy the Essential Histories series, it would be nice if they'd just put some overall statistics about the scope of the conflict in each book. Narrative is great, but sometimes numbers can help understand as well.
January 9, 2017
A good, if by it nature, brief introduction to the Palestine War of 1948. My only complaint would be the assumption that the reader had an indepth knowledge of the geography of Israel and the surronding areas. A good map in the early part of the book would definitely have enhanced the understanding of the subject for me.
It does, however, succeed in providing background to the troubles in Israel and Middle-East today.
It does, however, succeed in providing background to the troubles in Israel and Middle-East today.
February 22, 2014
Packed with a lot of detail but it left me wanting more. The essential history books are always useful. If you are interested in why the Middle East is such a mess, this is worth checking out.
December 4, 2014
This is a very nice introduction to the Palestine War of 1948.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews