Israel's Occupation

This first complete history of Israel's occupation of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip allows us to see beyond the smoke screen of politics in order to make sense of the dramatic changes that have developed on the ground over the past forty years. Looking at a wide range of topics, from control of water and electricity to health care and education as well as surveillance and torture, Neve Gordon's panoramic account reveals a fundamental shift from a politics of life-when, for instance, Israel helped Palestinians plant more than six-hundred thousand trees in Gaza and provided farmers with improved varieties of seeds-to a macabre politics characterized by an increasing number of deaths. Drawing attention to the interactions, excesses, and contradictions created by the forms of control used in the Occupied Territories, Gordon argues that the occupation's very structure, rather than the policy choices of the Israeli government or the actions of various Palestinian political factions, has led to this radical shift.

Table of Contents:
List of Illustrations List of Abbreviations Acknowledgments Preface Introduction: Of Dowries and Brides 1. The Infrastructure of Control 2. "The Invisible Occupation" 3. Of Horses and Riders 4. Identification Trouble 5. Civilian Control 6. The Intifada 7. Outsourcing the Occupation 8. The Separation Principle Epilogue Appendix 1: Structure of the Civil Branch of the West Bank's Military Government Appendix 2: West Bank Settlements According to Year Established Notes Index

About the Author :
Neve Gordon is Senior Lecturer in Politics and Government at Ben-Gurion University, Beer-Sheva, Israel. He is coeditor of Torture: Human Rights, Medical Ethics, and the Case of Israel, editor of From the Margins of Globalization: Critical Perspectives on Human Rights, and a regular contributor to publications including The Nation, In These Times, and the National Catholic Reporter.

Review :
"What is most interesting in Gordon's analysis is the way in which the renovation of occupation practices are identified as an immanent outcome of the 'excesses and contradictions' within the system itself." Times Higher Education "Israel's Occupation becomes a must read on my list; and my first question of anyone that wants to argue with any perspectives on Israel would be 'Have you read this book yet?'" Palestine Chronicle "A must read." -- Jim Miles Opednews.com "This book is a significant contribution to our understanding Israel's changing methods of rule during the four decades of occupation." Middle East Journal "A unique perspective on the changing dynamics of the Israel-Palestine conflict... The breadth and detail of Gordon's scope provides a powerful systemic framework." -- Katya Nasim Socialist Review: Monthly Mag Of The Socialist Workers Party