Cursed Victory: Israel and the Occupied Territories; A History

by Ahron Bregman Narrated by Derek Perkins

Overview

In a move that would forever alter the map of the Middle East, Israel captured the West Bank, Golan Heights, Gaza Strip, and Sinai Peninsula in 1967's brief but pivotal Six Day War. Cursed Victory is the first complete history of the war's troubled aftermath-a military occupation of the Palestinian territories that is now well into its fifth decade.

Drawing on unprecedented access to high-level sources, top secret memos and never-before-published letters, the book provides a gripping and unvarnished chronicle of how what Israel promised would be an "enlightened occupation" quickly turned sour and the anguished diplomatic attempts to bring it to an end. Bregman sheds fresh light on critical moments in the peace process, taking us behind the scenes as decisions about the fate of the territories were made, and more often, as crucial opportunities to resolve the conflict were missed.

As the narrative moves from Jerusalem to New York, Oslo to Beirut, and from the late 1960s to the present day, Cursed Victory provides vivid portraits of the key players in this unfolding drama, including Moshe Dayan, King Hussein of Jordan, Bill Clinton, and Yasser Arafat. Yet Bregman always reminds us how diplomatic and backroom negotiations affected the daily lives of millions of Arabs and how the Palestinian resistance, especially during the first and second intifadas, in turn shaped political developments. As Bregman concludes, the occupation has become a dark stain on Israel's history and an era when international opinion of the country shifted decisively.

Cursed Victory is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand the origins of the ongoing conflict in the region.

Editorial Reviews

JULY 2015 - AudioFile

Narrator Derek Perkins’s clear, strong voice has an edge that reinforces the harshness of Bregman’s historical discussion of Arab-Israeli relations from 1967 to 2007. The author, a former Israeli military officer, seems cynical and hostile toward his native land, justifiably or not, in this brisk but information-laden history. Perkins’s edgy tone provides a service to the text, in representing it truly, and a disservice, since a softer tone might have made Bregman’s work seem more evenhanded. Despite Perkins’s almost brusque manner, his admirable reading, like the book itself, is clear, intelligent, incisive, and briskly paced. But between the tone of the text itself and the narration, those who have not made up their minds against Israel may be put off. W.M. © AudioFile 2015, Portland, Maine

Product Details

BN ID:	2940169550351
Publisher:	Blackstone Audio, Inc.
Publication date:	05/15/2015
Edition description:	Unabridged

Videos