The ascendance of Israel's radical right

Abstract

The Israeli people were stunned in 1984 when they learned of a barely averted plot to blow up five buses full of Arab passengers and an earlier attempt to blow up Dome of Rock, holy Muslim mosque in Jerusalem. Even more shocking was discovery that terrorists in question were not a bizarre radical sect, but members of Gush Emunim, the Block of Faithful, a fundamentalist group committed to establishing Jewish settlements in West Bank. For first time, Israelis had to confront fact that rise of Radical Right--and religious fundamentalism, extreme nationalism, and aggressive anti-Arab sentiment associated with it--was becoming a significant part of nation's public life. The first book to examine origins, convictions, and political impact of entire Radical Right, The Ascendance of Israel's Radical Right provides extraordinary insights into a political camp whose influence pervades Israeli politics and culture as well as Arab-Israeli relations. Sprinzak traces Zionist roots of Radical Right and its reemergence following Six-Day War and Camp David accords. He examines increasing control of Radical Right over settlements in West Bank, its penetration of more moderate parties such as Likud and National Religious Party, and its reaction to Intafada and Persian Gulf Crisis. With in-depth portraits of major movements--including Tehiya, Tzomet, and Moledet parties, Gush Emunim, and late Meir Kahane and his Kach party, and various underground or terrorist groups--he sheds new light on people and events which produce such intense fervor and on their political beliefs--for instance, views that Arabs should be transferred from occupied territories and that Israel was founded to establish a safe home for Jews, not to protect human rights of Palestinians. Sprinzak argues that approximately 20 to 25 percent of Israeli citizens share convictions of Radical Right, and that it is especially strong among young. Indeed, as message of this camp spreads throughout country, Sprinzak predicts that Radical Right's impact on Israeli politics and national security will only increase. As The Ascendance of Israel's Radical Right shows, Radical Right is not--as is often thought--a small lunatic fringe, but a major school of Israeli Zionism, whose ideas are propagated by sophisticated and thoughtful leaders with large public appeal. Understanding what Radical Right has already achieved, and how it is currently shaping much of Israel's government agenda is important for every Israeli and Arab, as well as anyone who is concerned with future of Middle East.