Jimmy Carter’s terminal illness reignited a bitter dispute over accusations the former president was antisemitic after he wrote a bestselling book likening the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories to South African apartheid.
Prominent American supporters of Israel lined up to denounce Carter and the book, Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid, when it was published in 2006.
Abe Foxman, director of the Anti-Defamation League, called the former president a “bigot”. Deborah Lipstadt, who is now the Biden administration’s special envoy against antisemitism, accused him of having a “Jewish problem”. Alan Dershowitz, the US constitutional lawyer and ardent advocate for Israel, said Carter set out to offend Israelis and Jews.
“Jimmy Carter’s sensitivities seem to have a gaping hole when it comes to Jews. There is a term for that,” he wrote.
Others did not beat around the bush and called Carter an antisemite.
Pro-Israel pressure groups placed ads in the New York Times accusing Carter of facilitating those who “pursue Israel’s annihilation” and claiming he was “blinded by an anti-Israel animus”.
News that Carter had entered hospice care at the beginning of the year prompted calls for critics to apologise for the abuse, drawing an admission from at least one critic.
Among those outraged by Carter’s book in 2006 were members of the former president’s own foundation, which has built an international reputation for its work on human rights and to alleviate suffering. Steve Berman led a mass resignation from the Carter Center’s board of councillors at the time.
Earlier this year, Berman revealed that he later wrote to Carter to apologise and to say that the former president had been right.
“I had started to view Israel’s occupation of the Palestinians as something that started in 1967 as an accident but was now becoming an enterprise with colonial intentions,” Berman said in his letter to Carter.
Shortly before Carter’s death, Peter Beinart,described as “the most influential liberal Zionist of his generation”, said the time had come for the former president’s critics to apologise for the “shameful way that the book was received by many significant people”.
Beinart named Foxman and Lipstadt as among those who “attacked and slandered” Carter even though he brokered the Camp David peace accords between Israel and Egypt in 1978.
Jimmy Carter, center, brokered the peace treaty between President Anwar Sadat of Egypt, left, and the Israeli prime minister, Menachem Begin, in 1979. Photograph: Bob Daugherty/AP
“I think there would be something profoundly valuable for some of those folks … to apologise to Carter,” he said.
“The ability to recognise that you are wrong, that certain facts have made it clear I think that what Carter was saying in 2006 was really ahead of its time, and that Carter was not just right but he was showing a very unusual form of political courage.”
In 2021, Kai Bird, author of a recent biography of Carter’s time in the White House, called accusations of antisemitism “an outrage” but said they continue to linger because he was the first president to speak about the need for a “Palestinian homeland” and because he pressured Israel over peace talks with Egypt.
“The former president’s decision to use the word ‘apartheid’ no longer seems a stretch; indeed, today it seems to describe the reality on the ground in the occupied West Bank. I don’t think Carter has a Jewish problem. It’s just the reverse. The American Jewish establishment has a Jimmy Carter problem,” Bird wrote in the Israeli newspaper Haaretz.
Beinart, an Orthodox Jew whose parents immigrated to the US from South Africa, said Carter’s political allies also turned their backs on him.
“He was thrown under the bus by leading members of his own Democratic party,” he said.
That included Nancy Pelosi, who was about to become speaker of the House of Representatives. She said Carter “does not speak for the Democratic party on Israel”.
Carter was also attacked in the press.
The New Republic’s editor-in-chief, Martin Peretz, an ardent supporter of Israel who has since drawn his own accusations of bigotry after calling Arab society “backward” and saying “Muslim life is cheap”, wrote that Carter would “go down in history as a Jew-hater”.
In a book review for the Washington Post, the writer Jeffrey Goldberg accused Carter of “hostility to Israel” in part for failing to recognise that the country “dearly wants to give up the bulk of its West Bank settlements”. Seventeen years later the settlements are still there and expanding.
Carter himself noted that Palestinian voices were largely excluded from the debate about the book. Beinart said that many of the reviews in leading publications were by Jewish Americans while he could not find any by a Palestinian. A New York Times article about the reaction to the book quoted pro-Israel organisations attacking Carter’s motives, but did not include a single view from a Palestinian.
Months after his book’s publication, Carter told the Observer that he did not regret describing the occupation as apartheid.
“The word is the most accurate available to describe Palestine. Apartheid is when two different people live in the same land, and they are forcibly segregated, and one dominates or persecutes the other. That’s what’s happening in Palestine: so the word is very, very accurate. It’s used widely, and every day, in Israel,” he said.
As the former president’s health deteriorated and he withdrew from public view, his foundation, the Carter Center, upset many Israelis further when it called for a ceasefire days after the 7 October Hamas attack by quoting his 2002 Nobel peace prize speech: “We will not learn to live together in peace by killing each other’s children.”
The Center warned that collective punishment and the murder of civilians was contrary to international law – a warning that looks prescient now that Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has been indicted for war crimes alongside his former defence minister and the Hamas military leader, Mohammed Deif
In this book Carter argues that Israel's continued control and construction of settlements have been the primary obstacles to a comprehensive peace agreement in the Middle East.[3] That perspective, coupled with the use of the word Apartheid in the titular phrase Peace Not Apartheid, and what critics said were errors and misstatements in the book, sparked controversy. Carter has defended his book and countered that response to it "in the real world…has been overwhelmingly positive."[4]
The documentary Man from Plains (2007) depicts the book tour Carter undertook to promote his book.
Purpose, main argument, and major points
"The ultimate purpose"
The ultimate purpose of my book is to present facts about the Middle East that are largely unknown in America, to precipitate discussion and to help restart peace talks (now absent for six years) that can lead to permanent peace for Israel and its neighbors. Another hope is that Jews and other Americans who share this same goal might be motivated to express their views, even publicly, and perhaps in concert. I would be glad to help with that effort.[4]
Thesis: How to achieve "permanent peace in the Middle East"
Carter identifies "two interrelated obstacles to permanent peace in the Middle East":
[1] Some Israelis believe they have the right to confiscate and colonize Palestinian land and try to justify the sustained subjugation and persecution of increasingly hopeless and aggravated Palestinians; and
To bring an end to what he calls "this continuing tragedy", in Chapter 17 ("Summary"), Carter calls for a revitalization of the peace process based on the following three "key requirements":
a. The security of Israel must be guaranteed ...
b. The internal debate within Israel must be resolved in order to define Israel's permanent legal boundary ...
c. The sovereignty of all Middle East nations and sanctity of international borders must be honored ...[3]
The Apartheid analogy
Regarding the use of the word "Apartheid" in the title of his book, Carter has said:
It's not Israel. The book has nothing to do with what's going on inside Israel which is a wonderful democracy, you know, where everyone has guaranteed equal rights and where, under the law, Arabs and Jews who are Israelis have the same privileges about Israel. That's been most of the controversy because people assume it's about Israel. It's not.[5]
I've never alleged that the framework of apartheid existed within Israel at all, and that what does exist in the West Bank is based on trying to take Palestinian land and not on racism. So it was a very clear distinction.[6]
In remarks broadcast over radio, Carter claimed that Israel's policies amounted to an apartheid worse than South Africa's:[7]
When Israel does occupy this territory deep within the West Bank, and connects the 200-or-so settlements with each other, with a road, and then prohibits the Palestinians from using that road, or in many cases even crossing the road, this perpetrates even worse instances of apartness, or apartheid, than we witnessed even in South Africa.[7]
"Some major points"
In his op-ed "Reiterating the Keys to Peace", published in The Boston Globe on 20 December 2006, Carter summarizes "[s]ome major points in the book":
Multiple deaths of innocent civilians have occurred on both sides, and this violence and all terrorism must cease
Often excluded from their former homes, land, and places of worship, protesting Palestinians have been severely dominated and oppressed. There is forced segregation between Israeli settlers and Palestine's citizens, with a complex pass system required for Arabs to traverse Israel's multiple checkpoints
An enormous wall snakes through populated areas of what is left of the West Bank, constructed on wide swaths of bulldozed trees and property of Arab families, obviously designed to acquire more territory and to protect the Israeli colonies already built. (Hamas declared a unilateral cease-fire in August 2004 as its candidates sought local and then national offices, which they claim is the reason for reductions in casualties to Israeli citizens.)
Combined with this wall, Israeli control of the Jordan River Valley will completely enclose Palestinians in their shrunken and divided territory. Gaza is surrounded by a similar barrier with only two openings, still controlled by Israel. The crowded citizens have no free access to the outside world by air, sea, or land
The Palestinian people are now being deprived of the necessities of life by economic restrictions imposed on them by Israel and the United States because 42 percent voted for Hamas candidates in this year's election. Teachers, nurses, policemen, firemen and other employees cannot be paid, and the UN has reported food supplies in Gaza equivalent to those among the poorest families in sub-Sahara Africa, with half the families surviving on one meal a day
Mahmoud Abbas, first as prime minister and now as president of the Palestinian National Authority and leader of the PLO, has sought to negotiate with Israel for almost six years, without success. Hamas leaders support such negotiations, promising to accept the results if approved by a Palestinian referendum
UN Resolutions, the Camp David Accords of 1978, the Oslo Agreement of 1993, official US Policy, and the International Roadmap for Peace are all based on the premise that Israel withdraw from occupied territories. Also, Palestinians must accept the same commitment made by the 23 Arab nations in 2002: to recognize Israel's right to live in peace within its legal borders. These are the two keys to peace[8]
Critical response to Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid at the time of release was mixed. According to Julie Bosman, criticism of the book "has escalated to a full-scale furor," much of which has focused on Carter's use of the word "apartheid" in the subtitle.[9] Some critics, including several leaders of the Democratic Party and of American Jewish organizations, have interpreted the subtitle as an allegation of Israeli apartheid, which they believe to be inflammatory and unsubstantiated.[10][11][12]Tony Karon, Senior Editor at TIME.com and a former anti-Apartheid activist for the ANC, said: "Jimmy Carter had to write this book precisely because Palestinian life and history is not accorded equal value in American discourse, far from it. And his use of the word apartheid is not only morally valid; it is essential, because it shakes the moral stupor that allows many liberals to rationalize away the daily, grinding horror being inflicted on Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza".[13] Former President Bill Clinton wrote a brief letter to the chairman of the American Jewish Committee, thanking him for articles criticizing the book and citing his agreement with Dennis Ross's attempts to "straighten ... out" Carter's claims and conclusions about Clinton's own summer 2000 Camp David peace proposal.[14][15]
Critics claim that Carter crossed the line into anti-Semitism. Abraham Foxman, the national director of the Anti-Defamation League, initially accused Carter of "engaging in anti-Semitism" in the book; Foxman told James Traub later that he would not call the former president himself an "anti-Semite" or a "bigot".[16][17] Ethan Bronner also asserted that Carter's "overstatement" in the book "hardly adds up to anti-Semitism."[18]
Some journalists and academics have praised Carter for what they believe to be speaking honestly about the Israeli–Palestinian conflict in a media environment described as hostile to opponents of Israel's policies.[19][20] Some left-leaning Israeli politicians such as Yossi Beilin and Shulamit Aloni argued that Carter's critique of Israeli policy in the Palestinian territories reflects that of many Israelis themselves.[21]
Carter has responded to negative reviews in the mainstream news media in an op-ed published in the Los Angeles Times (which was excerpted in The Guardian and elsewhere):
Book reviews in the mainstream media have been written mostly by representatives of Jewish organizations who would be unlikely to visit the occupied territories, and their primary criticism is that the book is anti-Israel. Two members of Congress have been publicly critical. Incoming Speaker Nancy Pelosi for instance, issued a statement (before the book was published) saying that "he does not speak for the Democratic Party on Israel." Some reviews posted on Amazon.com call me "anti-Semitic", and others accuse the book of "lies" and "distortions". A former Carter Center fellow has taken issue with it, and Alan Dershowitz called the book's title "indecent."
Out in the real world, however, the response has been overwhelmingly positive. I've signed books in five stores, with more than 1,000 buyers at each site. I've had one negative remark—that I should be tried for treason—and one caller on C-SPAN said that I was an anti-Semite. My most troubling experience has been the rejection of my offers to speak, for free, about the book on university campuses with high Jewish enrollment and to answer questions from students and professors. I have been most encouraged by prominent Jewish citizens and members of Congress who have thanked me privately for presenting the facts and some new ideas.[4][22]
He also wrote a "Letter to Jewish Citizens of America" explaining "his use of the term 'apartheid' and sympathizing with Israelis who fear terrorism."[23][24]
In a report updated by the Associated Press after the publication of Carter's "Letter to Jewish Citizens of America", Greg Bluestein observes that Carter replied generally to complaints of the book's errors and inaccuracies by Dennis Ross, Alan Dershowitz, Kenneth Stein, the Simon Wiesenthal Center, and others by pointing out that the Carter Center staff as well as an "unnamed 'distinguished' reporter" fact-checked it.[25][26]Rachel Zelkowitz points out that, as cited in various news accounts, "Carter has consistently defended his book's accuracy against Stein and other critics"; in a prepared statement, Carter's press secretary Deanna Congileo responds "that Carter had his book reviewed for accuracy throughout the writing process" and that "[a]s with all of President Carter's previous books, any detected errors will be corrected in later editions ..."[27] In response to the Associated Press's request for a comment on the resignations of Stein and 14 other members of the Center's Board of Councilors, speaking on behalf of both Carter and the Carter Center, Congileo provided a statement from its executive director, John Hardman, who, according to Zelkowitz, "also fact checked Palestine, saying that the members of that board 'are not engaged in implementing the work of the Center.'"[28]
Public and other programs pertaining to the book
Carter has said that debate on Israel-related issues is muffled in the US media by lobbying efforts of the pro-Israel lobby: "[M]any controversial issues concerning Palestine and the path to peace for Israel are intensely debated among Israelis and throughout other nations—but not in the United States. ... This reluctance to criticize any policies of the Israeli government is because of the extraordinary lobbying efforts of the American-Israel Political Action Committee [sic] and the absence of any significant contrary voices."[4][22] He has stressed that through the debate he hopes this book will stimulate and through his own related public-speaking and media appearances, he hopes to tear down the "impenetrable wall" that stops the people of the US from seeing the plight of Palestinians.[4][22]
Brandeis University visit
In early December 2006 Brandeis University invited Carter to visit the university to debate his book with Alan Dershowitz. Carter declined that invitation, explaining: "I don't want to have a conversation even indirectly with Dershowitz. There is no need to for me to debate somebody who, in my opinion, knows nothing about the situation in Palestine." Carter said that the Brandeis debate request "is proof that many in the United States are unwilling to hear an alternative view on the nation's most taboo foreign policy issue, Israel's occupation of Palestinian territory," adding: "There is no debate in America about anything that would be critical of Israel."[29]
Dershowitz criticized Carter's refusal to debate him, asserting: "Carter’s refusal to debate wouldn't be so strange if it weren't for the fact that he claims that he wrote the book precisely so as to start debate over the issue of the Israel-Palestine peace process. If that were really true, Carter would be thrilled to have the opportunity to debate."[30] He later wrote in The Case Against Israel's Enemies that Carter's accusation of his ignorance was untrue "since we had discussed my several visits to the Palestinian Authority during our conversation only months earlier in Herzliya."[31]
In a Boston Globe article of 22 December 2006, Patricia Johnston said she and many colleagues had offered to chip in perhaps $100 each to pay for whatever travel and security costs a Carter visit would entail. "Who is Alan Dershowitz?" Johnston said. Carter "is the former president of the United States, who has done so much to further the cause of peace in the Middle East and elsewhere. It's an insult to suggest that he should have to defend himself that way." She said she envisioned Carter giving a traditional speech and taking audience questions.[32]
On 26 December 2006, WCVB-TV (an ABC-TV affiliate), reported that "[a]bout 100 students, faculty and alumni of Brandeis University have signed an online petition to push the administration to bring former President Carter to campus to discuss his new book on Palestine, without being required to debate it."[33]
The Boston Globe reported that since it initially revealed "that Carter felt unwelcome on the Waltham campus, people have argued over whether he is unwilling to answer for his views, or whether Brandeis, which was founded by the American Jewish community, can't tolerate criticism of Israel. The latter is a view that some professors hope they can dispel by reviving the Carter visit."[32]
On 10 January 2007, it was reported that Carter would discuss Palestine Peace Not Apartheid at Brandeis University but that he would "not, however, debate the book with" Dershowitz.[28] Brandeis officials reported that Carter would "be the first former president to visit Brandeis since Harry Truman delivered the commencement address in 1957.... It will be Carter's first visit to a university to discuss the book, [Carter's spokeswoman Deanna] Congileo said", confirming also "the president has set no conditions and would answer as many questions as possible"; Carter plans to "speak for about 15 minutes and then answer questions for 45 minutes during the visit."
The speech, which occurred on 23 January 2007, was "closed to the public and limited to 'members of the university community only'"; nevertheless, Dershowitz said that he still planned to "attend and question Carter": "'I will be the first person to have my hand up to ask him a question,' he said. 'I guarantee that they won't stop me from attending.'"[34]
On 18 January 2007 news outlets reported Brandeis's announcement that while Dershowitz could not attend Carter's speech, after it ended he would have the stage for a "rebuttal."[35]
The day after the speech (24 January 2007), The New York Times reported on the program: "Questions were preselected by the committee that invited Mr. Carter, and the questioners included an Israeli student and a Palestinian student. After Mr. Carter left, Mr. Dershowitz spoke in the same gymnasium, saying that the former president oversimplified the situation and that his conciliatory and sensible-sounding speech at Brandeis belied his words in some other interviews."[36] According to David Weber of ABC News, Carter said "that he stood by the book and its title, that he apologized for what he called an 'improper and stupid' sentence in the book [which he acknowledged seemed to justify terrorism by saying that suicide bombings should end when Israel accepts the goals of the road map to peace with Palestinians and which he had already instructed his publisher to remove from its future editions,] and that he had been disturbed by accusations that he was anti-Semitic.... [Carter]...acknowledged...that 'Palestine Peace Not Apartheid' has 'caused great concern in the Jewish community,' but noted that it has nonetheless prompted discussion."[12][37][38] An editorial published in the Waltham, Massachusetts newspaper, the Daily News Tribune, concludes: "Carter succeeded in bringing to Brandeis a productive, civil debate."[34] Videotaped excerpts from Carter's visit to Brandeis were featured on several national news programs in the United States, such as NBC's morning program Today, along with follow-up interviews with Carter.[39]
As a result of the visit, major donors told Brandeis University that they would no longer give it money in "retaliation", according to Stuart Eizenstat, chief domestic policy adviser and executive director of the White House Domestic Policy Staff during Carter's presidency and a current trustee of Brandeis, as quoted in The Jewish Week in mid-February 2007.[40]
Man from Plains: Documentary feature film by Jonathan Demme
In 2007 Jonathan Demme made the filmMan from Plains, which "follows the former President as he takes part in a book tour across America to publicise his new tome, Palestine Peace Not Apartheid."[41][42]
According to the Boston Globe Demme filmed Carter for three months "to compile footage for a documentary about the former president's book and Carter's efforts to increase debate on the Israeli–Palestinian conflict."[43]
While it granted camera access to members of the news media for their broadcasts, Brandeis University refused Demme's request to film Carter's January 2007 speech for the end of the film, citing logistical and legal considerations.[43] The film debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival on 10 September 2007.[44]
Carter Center conversation
On 22 February 2007 Carter participated in a "conversation" about Palestine Peace Not Apartheid with former Secretary of StateMadeleine Albrightat the Carter Center, moderated by Conflict Resolution Program Director Matthew Hodes.
The event sold out in early January 2007.[45] It was simultaneously webcast in the Carter Center's online "multi-media" section, and the Center's website now includes a direct link to the "archived webcast."[46]
On 8 March 2007 George Washington University hosted a visit by Carter during which he discussed his book. According to reporter Beth Schwartzapfel in The Forward, a group of Jewish students led by Robert Fishman, executive director of the campus Hillel, dominated the microphones, preventing other students from asking questions, while asking questions critical of Carter prepared, forwarded, and distributed to them in advance by faculty and students at Emory University as if they were their own questions:
The sheet distributed to students listed five questions. Among the issues raised were Carter's refusal to debate Harvard Law School professor Alan Dershowitz and former U.S. Middle East negotiator Dennis Ross; continuing Palestinian violence in Gaza; Carter's assertion that Israel did not accept Clinton's peace proposal; whether donations from the Saudi royal family explains [sic] the failure of the Carter Center to criticize human rights abuses in Saudi Arabia, and Carter's decision to use the word "apartheid" in his book's title. One of the students involved in distributing the handout, Aviva Berman, said that four of the five questions came directly from a list prepared by Deborah Lipstadt and other professors at Emory University, prior to Carter's appearance at the school's Atlanta campus. "When Carter came to speak at Emory, they had those questions made up, so they just forwarded them to me", she said.[47]
Schwartzapfel also cites "[a] video of the event, posted to the G.W. Web site, [which] shows that Carter received several standing ovations and long stretches of applause."[48] "But", Schwartzapfel continues, "an Associated Press story that ran immediately after the event characterized the audience as 'polite but mostly critical,'" adding: "Jack Stokes, an A.P. spokesman, told the Forward that the article's description of the audience 'was based on reporter Barry Schweid's observation of the speech, as well as the subsequent Q&A Carter engaged in with the students. The A.P. story stands as written.'"[47]
Schweid observes:
Despite the storm it ignited, former President Carter held fast on Thursday to his accusation that Israel oppresses the Palestinians on the West Bank and Gaza and seeks to colonize the land. Speaking at The George Washington University to a polite but mostly critical student audience, Carter offered no second thoughts on his book "Palestine Peace Not Apartheid". ... He said he was not accusing Israel of racism nor referring to its treatment of Arabs within the country. "I defined apartheid very carefully" as "the forced segregation by one people of another" on their own land, he said.[49]
Schwartzapfel reports, however:
Brian Hennessey, vice president of the Vineeta Foundation, which is making a documentary on Carter, alleged to the Forward that he witnessed G.W. Hillel director Robert Fishman and several Jewish students conspiring to control the Q&A session. According to Hennessey, a handout was distributed with negative questions and then the students strategically grabbed the seats closest to the microphones. Hennessey said that he overheard people in the group saying that the point of their strategy was to make sure that Carter, whose book, Palestine Peace Not Apartheid, faced only tough questions. In the end, most of the eight questions fielded by Carter at the March 8 event took a pro-Israel tack in challenging the former president. Four of the students read their questions off of the sheet distributed beforehand.[47]
Fishman told the Forward, Schwartzapfel reports further: "'You know how we did it, honestly? ... We said, "Let's sit near the microphones." They each had a copy of the questions, and then they stood on line.'"[47] Yet, she adds: "Hennessey asserted that the maneuver ended up influencing media coverage of the event. 'This small group successfully outgunned the microphones and managed to give some journalists this totally erroneous impression that that was how the student body felt about Carter,' he said."[47] Whereas "Hennessey, who described Carter's book as 'very courageous,' contended that the G.W. students 'very successfully stood up and blocked anyone else from asking a question,'" Schwartzapfel continues:
Berman insisted that she and her fellow pro-Israel students did nothing wrong. It wasn’t his [Fishman's] group's responsibility "to let other people ask questions", he said. "If they wanted to get to the microphone quicker, they could have."
Fishman also rejected the assertion that the students' tactics were improper. "There was nothing done in there to stop anyone from asking questions", Fishman said. "It's important that, when you have that many people in the room who may not be familiar with the Israeli–Palestinian situation, those people have the opportunity also to hear those areas that are questionable in the book."
In that sense, Fishman said, his group's approach "is what dialogue is about."[47]
University of Iowa visit
Pointing out that "The former president rarely speaks about his book at universities. He says he’s been invited to more than 100 campuses, but he's only visited five," Claire Keller reported that, during his public appearance at the University of Iowa, in Iowa City, on 18 April 2007,[50] Carter said, "I wrote this book to describe the plight of the Palestinians and because I'm convinced we desperately need debate about where we are and where we ought to be going, and how to rejuvenate the non-existent peace process in the Middle East" ... [and that] Carter says the book's objective is permanent peace for Israel and its neighbors; it’s something the former president says he’s dedicated his entire adult life to.[51]
Keller wrote that "Many in attendance applaud his efforts" but that "others criticize the author, claiming his book contains factual errors and misstatements. Members of the local Jewish community say it's simply one-sided."[51] She quotes Tali Ariav of the Hillel Jewish Student Center on the Iowa campus, who said, "'I am an Israeli so of course I served in the military, so I feel emotionally involved, but I feel every person, every American, every thinker needs to think twice about Carter's opinion, because it's not right' ..."[51] Nevertheless, Keller added, "Carter adamantly defends the accuracy of his book, saying he wrote every word himself."[51]
University of California, Irvine visit
On 3 May 2007, Carter presented a lecture and participated in a discussion relating to the book in conjunction with the Center for the Study of Democracy and Model United Nations, in association with the Center for Citizen Peacebuilding, Department of Political Science, at the University of California, Irvine. According to Carter's lecture transcript, in answering a question on whether conflict between pro- and anti-Israel student groups obstructs chances of peace, he said, "I think an altercation or debate or sometimes even an uncomfortable confrontation on a college campus in America is a good move in the right direction. But I would like to see the leaders of those two groups form a combined group that would take advantage of my invitation to go to Palestine and see what’s going on."[52]
^According to https://www.nytimes.com/pages/books/bestseller/index.html "Best Sellers: Hardcover Nonfiction", New York Times, accessed 27 January 2007: Palestine Peace Not Apartheid was number 6 on the list as of date accessed. It was listed as number 11 in "New York Times Best Sellers: Hardcover Nonfiction" on 18 March 2007, on the list for 15 weeks for the week ending 3 March 2007. As of 6 May 2007 it no longer appears on the expanded list featured at that site
^James D. Besser, "Jewish and Israel News from New York - the Jewish Week". Archived from the original on 2007-06-13. Retrieved 2006-12-25. "Jewish Criticism of Carter Intensifies: Charge of Anti-Semitism from One Leader as Ex-president Deepens His Critique of Israeli Policy in West Bank", The Jewish Week, 15 December 2005, accessed 8 January 2007
^ Jump up to:abAssociated Press, "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved 2007-01-13. "Atlanta: 14 Carter Center Advisers Resign in Protest Over Book", AccessNorthGA.com, 11 January 2007, accessed 11 January 2007
^Chris Tilly, "Demme 'Comes in Peace' - the TOMB movie news - Time Out Film". Archived from the original on 2007-05-26. Retrieved 2007-01-24. "Demme 'Comes in Peace'," The Time Out Movie Blog: This Week's Top Stories from the Movie World (TOMB), Time Out London, 5 December 2006, accessed 23 January 2007
Carter Q&A: Carter Question Blog3 hosted by Brandeis University faculty and students about the book pursuant to the Brandeis University visit by Jimmy Carter. Answers by Carter. Also presents links to transcript of Carter's opening remarks, books, and media coverage. (Registration required for participation)
Following his #1 New York Times bestseller, Our Endangered Values, the former president, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, offers an assessment of what must be done to bring permanent peace to Israel with dignity and justice to Palestine.
President Carter, who was able to negotiate peace between Israel and Egypt, has remained deeply involved in Middle East affairs since leaving the White House. He has stayed in touch with the major players from all sides in the conflict and has made numerous trips to the Holy Land, most recently as an observer in the Palestinian elections of 2005 and 2006.
In this book, President Carter shares his intimate knowledge of the history of the Middle East and his personal experiences with the principal actors, and he addresses sensitive political issues many American officials avoid. Pulling no punches, Carter prescribes steps that must be taken for the two states to share the Holy Land without a system of apartheid or the constant fear of terrorism.
The general parameters of a long-term, two-state agreement are well known, the president writes. There will be no substantive and permanent peace for any peoples in this troubled region as long as Israel is violating key UN resolutions, official American policy, and the international “road map” for peace by occupying Arab lands and oppressing the Palestinians. Except for mutually agreeable negotiated modifications, Israel’s official pre-1967 borders must be honored. As were all previous administrations since the founding of Israel, US government leaders must be in the forefront of achieving this long-delayed goal of a just agreement that both sides can honor.
Palestine Peace Not Apartheid is a challenging, provocative, and courageous book.
Follow August 11, 2022 As might have been expected, Israeli and Jewish leaders were apoplectic at Carter for daring to criticize Israel. David Ross, who worked with Carter, had published an Op Ed in the NY Times excoriating Carter for a factual error he had made in identifying a map in the book. Fourteen members of the board of Carter’s foundation resigned in protest. So what is all the fuss about?
Jimmy Carter - image from USA TODAY
Carter has a fluid, if dry writing style. One reads him for information and analysis, not for literary inspiration. It is difficult to imagine the guy cracking a joke. There will be no whoopee cushions appearing unexpectedly under Roslynn at the dinner table. But Carter is arguably America’s greatest living statesman, a serious, religious fellow who puts his beliefs into practice by attempting to resolve international conflicts. He is a force for good in the world, and stands out when compared with the post White House activities many of the other ex-presidents. Nixon engaged almost exclusively in self-serving memoir writing. Reagan looked for the big payday giving million-dollar-a-pop speeches in Japan. 41 did some fishing and played a little golf before he teamed up with Bubba to do some concrete good. Ford dropped out of sight. I imagine 43 has maintained a low profile, spending his time clearing brush and enjoying holidays with his Saudi friends. Obama has been quiet, but has an activist organization working on important public issues and has been working on a project to help fix our gerrymandered congressional districting. Carter is the ex who has been the most engaged in the world on a global scale. He may be the only American who might have been ever been deemed a candidate for UN Secretary General. While one may agree or disagree with him on the particulars of specific international conflicts, only a maniac would contend that he is not a force for sanity in the world.
Carter offers specific information on what was agreed to when, what was said, what was understood re the various dealings between Israel, the Palestinians, and the national enemies at Israel’s borders. It is clear from his reportage that Israel does not live up to the innocent victim image it is so fond of presenting to the world. There is a common view that the Palestinians could have had over 90% of what they wanted in their negotiations with Israel if only Arafat had not been such a hard-ass. Carter offers a very detailed explanation for why that view is seriously at odds with reality. He concludes that what Israel has created, in the occupied territories, is a form of apartheid, in which the Palestinians play the role of South Africa’s blacks. It is a compelling case, particularly when Carter points out the actual significance of Israeli roads that not only divide the West Bank, but which engender cushion-space around them that Palestinians may not enter, when he points out that the pattern of Israeli construction is having the effect of chopping the West Bank up into islands of separate space, incapable of being joined into a single political entity, when he points out all the rights the Palestinians, in their own land, are denied. I’d be blowing things up too.
This view fits with what I have learned from other sources, both in books and from the journalists with whom I worked briefly a few years back. They told first hand accounts of Israeli soldiers who would taunt the local Palestinian youth and then when these people responded with tossed stones, the Israelis would slaughter them with automatic weapons. It was clear to me then that the perennial victims had taken on the attributes of their tormenters. If anything I believe Carter understates the case for the demise of moral authority in Israel. As in the USA, Israel is a nation that has come under the sway of extreme elements. Not all, or even certainly a majority of Israelis hold with the view of the extremists that all the land of the West Bank is really a part of Israel, but as long as extreme elements hold political power, and as long as they insist, despite UN condemnation and international law, on building more settlements in occupied territory, the problems there will only worsen. And it is clear that Israelis in power have every intention of absorbing large swaths of the West Bank into Israel-proper, in fact if not in law. It is no wonder that a disgusted populace rallied behind a murderous Hamas.
Jimmy Carter may not be the most dynamic writer, but he is very effective at presenting the information he has, and in offering his very informed take. If you are at all interested in Middle-East politics, Palestine: Peace not Apartheid is a must-read.
Follow March 24, 2008 When I told my parents I was going to do solidarity work in Palestine, they - in the midst of yelling and tears - asked me why. I said that I wanted to be able to come back and talk about what I had seen. My father's retort was something along the lines of "What about Jimmy Carter's book? What could you possibly say that a Nobel prize winning well respected ex-president couldn't?"
A year after coming home, I finally read it. There's very little that Carter and I have to say that's the same, as we're coming from very different places. Nonetheless, I was much more impressed than I expected to be. Though my critiques of the occupation would be more bottom-up and scathing, Carter still goes *much* further than any mainstream politician in the US has in years. Due to his fame, respect, and ultimately whiteness and Christianity, this book has quickly become the 101 text on the Israel/Palestine/Middle East conflict. As mainstream 101 texts go, it is surprisingly good.
In large part, the book details various peace talks and the main players in them, a very top-down and at times impersonal view of the conflict. Carter repeatedly chastises both Israeli and Palestinian leaders for their refusal to compromise, but certainly criticizes the Israeli leaders more. He notes that many of the milestones Palestinians have to meet for negotiations to continue are impossible and unfair. For example, the idea that all suicide bombings must be stopped is impossible when 1) Israel is imprisoning many of Palestine's most influential politicians, 2) Israel's much larger military can't even do that and 3) the root cause of the conflict isn't being discussed. Carter repeatedly pegs the occupation (albeit the one beginning in 1967, not the one in 1948) as the source of the conflict and even refers to Israel as a colonial power. He notes that Arafat could not realistically accept any of the offers made to him by Israel, including the "generous offer," because Israel insisted on maintaining control of all borders, air space, ocean access, and elctromagnetic frequencies (radio, TV, etc).
It's not until the last chapter that Carter really talks about the Wall and other ways that Palestinian lives are daily affected by the occupation. It's a strong ending, though it not being discussed earlier might make it difficult for some people to understand the stances Palestinian leaders took in negotiations.
All in all, I was pleasantly surprised. It's not by any means the first book I would recommend to someone already politicized looking to learn about the occupation, but it is much more accessible to someone like my liberal yet Zionist father. palestine 70 likes 7 comments Like Comment
Follow April 22, 2018 I felt this was an obviously truthful book, perhaps generating more controversy than it should have by using "apartheid" in the title. Carter has been in the Middle East so often (plus his inside knowledge from his years as President) that to think that he doesn't understand what is happening there is delusional. The last part of the book describes the Wall that Israel has constructed, which keeps the Palestinians away from Israeli (illegal) settlements, and makes it difficult for them to even get around in their own shrinking territory. The material he relates is infuriating and heartbreaking to read. Carter is truly a good person.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Previous review: Oblomov Next review: Pafko at the Wall the opening section of Underworld More recent review: Clockwork Orange
Follow September 2, 2023 immy Carter is a despicable anti-Semite who holds a grudge against the Jewish people who he blames for his losing the 1980 Presidential Election to Ronald Reagan. Jimmy Carter is also a pathetic and immoral opportunist who has jumped on the 'hate Israel' bandwagon to get his wizened face back into the limelight. Is Carter trying to remain in the limelight, at the expense of Israel's people? And at the expense of peace , justice, and human rights (YES, folks, Israeli Jews have human rights too , it so happens)! I intend, in this review, to answer some of Carter's repulsive charges against Israel and to show them up as the lies and blood libels which they are. There are those who will challenge my characterization of Carter as an anti-Semite. But here is proof that he is. Singling out Israel for opprobrium and international sanction out of all proportion of any other Middle East country is anti-Semitic. Especially coming from a man who connived to topple the enlightened and benevolent reign of Shah Reza Pahlavi, the two thousand year old Persian Imperial house that gave full equality to women unlike, any other Islamic country at the time, other than perhaps Turkey. He bares much blame for the repressive, cruel and genocidal Islamic Fundamentalist regime of the diabolical Ayatollah Khomeini and his evil acolyte Mahmoud 'Haman' Ahmadinejad. Comparing Israel and her leaders to the Nazis, as Carter does, is anti-semitic! Anti-semitism is when Israel is held to a different standard than any other country in the world- as Carter does! Anti-Semitism is when Israel is subjected to a unique double standard of judgement and criticism for it's actions in defending itself against threats to it's existance and population, as Carter does.
As is evident in the title of the book, Carter accuses Israel of being an Apartheid State. This is a vicious blood libel. Almost 2 million people living in Israel are not Jews. No laws on statute books prescribing living areas or movements. Unlike under South African Aparthied laws there is no Israeli ideology, policy or plan to segregate mistreat or persecute the Arab population. In Israel the State owns 93% of the land, which is leased to all citizens regardless of race. The remaining 7% can be bought by all Israeli citizens. There is no official seperate schoolig in Israel;people choose schools for their religious, linguistic or cultural background. Non-Jews can become citizens if they comply with necessary imigration requirements as anywhere in the world. Non-Jews can serve in the army as volunteers. Israeli Arabs are full citizens, enjoy full political rights, can vote and stand for election and political association- hardly Apartheid, Carter! As regards the much maligned settlers, has Carter ever visited these communities he so maligns, I have! They are beautiful and peaceful family orineted communities, half of them children, who are simply exercising the right to live in their ancient homeland. What is racist is the determination of the Arabs and their leftist supporters to get them off the land. since Biblical Times, Jews have lived in the West Bank and Gaza until forced to flee in 1948. Jews have a biblical, historical and legal right to settle in the West Bank. Under international law, territories are considered "occupied" only when taken in an act of agression. These disputed territories were tkane by Israel ina defensive war against Arab agression. There are no signed agreements between Israel and the Arabs regarding buliding/expanding settlements. Predictably Carter atacks the Security Fence built to keep Arab terrorists from getting into Israel and killing Jewish men, women and children. It is to protect the lives of Israel's people, it is not racist as Carter charges. It is only temporary and can be removed at any time when terrorist attacks end. The international law, which Carter continually evokes to villify Israel, does NOT ban expropriation of land in disputed territory completely. It bans only "extensive destruction and and appropriation of property not justified by millitary necesity. The route of the fence is defined by security and topographical needs. The security fence is NOT a wall (as reffered to by Israel-haters as the Apartheid Wall) Only 5% of it's current length is concrete, near the most vulnerable and threatened Israeli areas. The fence contains agricultural gates to enable farmers to continue cultivating their lands. Of course Carter does not mention this or any other truths inconvenient to his slander against Israel. Carter calls for the return of the so-called 'refugees' as a way of destroying Israel and anihilating her people. Some facts those who read Carter's propaganda pamphlet should remember: In 1948 the Arabs were encouraged to leave Israel by their leaders, who promised to purge the land of Jews. About 630 000 Arab refugees left Israel in 1948. About 800 000 Jews fled Arab lands, where they had lived for centuries, with nothing more than the clothes on their backs. They were absorbed by Israel. Arab refugees were intentionally not absorbed into Arab lands to which they fled so as tpo breed terrorism and push for the so- called "right of return" pushed by anti-Israeli racists like Jimmy Carter. The refugge problem is not soley between Israel and the 'Palestinian' Arabs but between Israel and the Arab States that attacked her in 1948. Palestinian refugees have no legal right of return to Israel under the general international conventions, nor under major UN resolutions, nor under elevant agreements between parties. To call for the 'return of "refugees"' as Carter does, is illegal.
Carter even implicitly defends suicide bombings. Unlike what Carter declares, suicide bombings, it so happens, are not desperate acts. Thos carrying them out are middle class, educated and brainwashed by evil fanatics. These suicide bombers (or more correctly homicide bombers) fell themselves to be the ultimate heroic expressions of their communities and the political organizations which have primed them. They thrive because of the specific political culture that fosters it, and believe in Paradise waiting for them after death. Carter, also of course condemmns the targeted assasinations of evil mass-murdering terrorists like Ahmed Yassin, Abdulaziz Rantisi and Mohammed Deif. Hamas has declared a war of genocide against Israel and all of her Jews down to the last child. All Hamas leaders are involved in and/or planning terrorist attacks and are therefore combatants. Millitary and political wings of the terrorist groups Hamas, the Popular Resistance Committees, Islamic Jihad and Al Qaeda overlap with no distinction. The aim of Hamas et al is the same as the Nazis, the genocide of Jews. Therefore Israel's policy of targeting Hamas leaders for assassination is legal, Carter! This book by Carter is a racist blood libel against the Israeli people and full of lies. If you want truth and objectivity stay far away from it.
Follow December 18, 2016 Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid by Jimmy Carter is a book I bought new ten years ago. Yes, it is that old. The middle east has more issues now but this book is about the Arab/Israeli situation then. The book starts out giving a history of the region going back thousands of years and how the region has changed leadership. President Carter then speaks personally about his trips to the middle east and what he sees, how he feels, what is said, who he talks with, etc. He is open and honest and shows the reader what he is up against politically and socially. It is a good lesson on both. Throughout the book, his love for peace and prosperity for both sides comes through. Not for one side over the other. I am not sure how the negative reviews found these things, I looked. I found none of this. Jimmy Carter presented himself as a President as someone that the USA could be proud of and he continues to do so. He is sweet and tenderhearted, working for the underdog, for peace, prosperity world wide, and has since he has left office. He didn't have to, he could just be sitting around and golfing but he is driven to do good for mankind and this book's pages express this. He is not the best writer but what he does write tells this. He let's his feels show honestly. He is a man that continues to this day, even with cancer, working for others. That is why I chose to read this book on his birthday, after all these years, because he may not be here much longer, and I wanted my review up to show that I did read it and I agree. Peace, not apartheid. Thank you Mr President for being a role model for all.
The Publisher Says: Following his #1 New York Times bestseller, Our Endangered Values, the former president, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, offers an assessment of what must be done to bring permanent peace to Israel with dignity and justice to Palestine. President Carter, who was able to negotiate peace between Israel and Egypt, has remained deeply involved in Middle East affairs since leaving the White House. He has stayed in touch with the major players from all sides in the conflict and has made numerous trips to the Holy Land, most recently as an observer in the Palestinian elections of 2005 and 2006.
In this book President Carter shares his intimate knowledge of the history of the Middle East and his personal experiences with the principal actors, and he addresses sensitive political issues many American officials avoid. Pulling no punches, Carter prescribes steps that must be taken for the two states to share the Holy Land without a system of apartheid or the constant fear of terrorism.
The general parameters of a long-term, two-state agreement are well known, the president writes. There will be no substantive and permanent peace for any peoples in this troubled region as long as Israel is violating key U.N. resolutions, official American policy, and the international "road map" for peace by occupying Arab lands and oppressing the Palestinians. Except for mutually agreeable negotiated modifications, Israel's official pre-1967 borders must be honored. As were all previous administrations since the founding of Israel, U.S. government leaders must be in the forefront of achieving this long-delayed goal of a just agreement that both sides can honor.
Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid is a challenging, provocative, and courageous book.
My Review: I do not have a dog in this fight. I'm not Jewish, I'm not Palestinian, and I'm not Christian so this isn't homeland or holy land to me.
But I'm a human being, and a very committed secular humanist. Israel's right to exist should be inarguable. The Palestinian homeland should be self-governing. But NEITHER should be run by gawd, since such an entity doesn't exist, and the rule books that the religions here in conflict use are both so revolting and reprehensible.
President Carter is a wise man, and his book is packed with commonsensical compromises. For those reasons alone, there is no chance whatsoever that anyone in power will listen to him. Wisdom is the garlic to the vampires of politics, and common sense can't get any traction where gawd is in the debate.
One side or the other must lose. There is no compromise that will make both sides happy enough to stop killing each other in gawd's name. So the inevitable must occur: Victory for one, defeat for the other, and many more generations of blood spilled over a scrap of desert with little to recommend it.
This is what religion does, people: It makes hate roil the never-calm waters of the human soul. Its purpose is to divide, separate, blame, vilify. It is very very good at those things. The reason is that it was created by humankind in humankind's own worst image. There is nothing "divine" about it...just humans bein' themselves, murdering apes.
Follow November 12, 2011 Mr. Carter is accused of anti-Semitism? Seriously? That's the opposite of the impression I had when reading his book and especially in the first 3 chapters.
I highly appreciate what he said about Gaza and mistreatments of the Palestinians especially in the last 5 years when the so-called "peace process" stopped.
I thought that he should express a direct blame to the brutal Israeli policies more than he did. I also think the US policies in recent years are contributing to eliminate any REAL peace attempts and that Mr. Carter should have said more about that.
After all these years he still sounds like a polite Politian.
Regardless, I'm so glad he wrote this book. It seems like he was filling a gap in the topic especially for Westerners. To us, Arabs, there is much more in it than this simplified analysis. There is pain and injustice.
Follow November 24, 2017 This book is dead honest. It's a must read if you are interested in the Palestinian quest for freedom. It's not a road map nor is it a solution but it's consideration of what is sustainable. The Palestinian people deserve to be free to live a life free of segregation and oppression and this book highlights in simple terms what it means to replace an increasing moral decay, brought by decades of Zionist ideology and brainwash, with a peace. Co-existence in which ever form IS possible but it is only possible when the Zionist apartheid regime is replaced with a government that promotes a radical change in the way Israeli view or should view their brothers and sisters the Palestinians. And that would be the first small step in a giant leap towards a reconciliation that certainly doesn't need any more water under the bridge. Jimmy Carter is the only honourable president the USA has ever had. He's not the best writer but his heart is in the right place. He has shared his thoughts and views and facts about one of the most pressing political and humanitarian issues of our time, the freedom for the Palestinians and the end of the apartheid in Israel.
Follow October 21, 2024 This would appear on first glance to be a strong statement from a US President, particularly given the use of apartheid in the title, but nuance is critical and with the Palestine/Israel situation nuance is everything.
Carter portrays himself to be at the forefront of senior US leadership when it comes to recognizing the issues at hand yet at the very beginning in the timeline of events, he completely glosses over any reference to the word or specific event of the "Nakba" (Catastrophe in English) - the word Palestinians use for their ethnic cleansing upon the formation of the State of Israel in 1948. He mentions they fled as is the standard Zionist line but we have no real context as to why the Palestinians need to be occupied other than security and terrorism - never mind their right to resist the occupation and theft of their land - this is not specifically the focus. There's a critical difference between "terrorist" and "resistance fighter". Also the idea of "state terrorism" seems to not be relevant in the context of the continuous terrorism of occupation.
In fact, there's not much mention of the occupation directly until the end of the book. Confronting the roots of the colonial project, or further even definining it properly are the keys to solving it. The roots are ugly, there was backing by patron states from the start and the power disparity has never approached equality - even before 1948. He never addresses issues in the ideology of Zionism itself which insists upon the whole land belonging to an elevated ethnic group. Admitting this would change the entire outlook on the intentions of the Zionists which has played out exactly as an ethno-state might since this book's publication in 2006. Further settlements in the West Bank, a siege on Gaza, new Knesset laws establishing the primacy of Jews and ever greater violence, in fact the worst period of violence (especially when adding in the present war) that the land has seen in the past 100 years has shown that nothing of substance has ever been addressed.
Actions more than words and a clear understanding of the Palestinian grievances is critical to understanding history and to move forward towards peace if it's even possible in the near future. All Camp David did was neutralize Egypt as a potential support to the Palestinian issue. All Oslo did was allow Israel to kick the can down the road while they continued in their settlement rush. All the Jordan peace arrangement provided was neutralization on Palestine's east border. All that has been accomplished are the conditions for further Israeli expansion and genocide. Actions since have shown all this to be true.
With all of this in consideration, books like this are potentially dangerous as a sly cover to the truth. Palestinians are presented as hopeless negotiating partners when they refuse peace deals that any sane person would never accept - deals for peace at the cost of permanent occupation and a rejection of autonomy in selecting leaders and policies. On the other hand the true intentions of the Israelis - by continuing expansion of settlements and occupation of Palestinians to allow it to happen - is never looked at directly despite the facts of history. There is no reason for this to stop. Zionist ideology believes the entire land to be theirs and until that fact is faced we are going to see the continuation of what is happening in front of us - the erasue of Palestinians from the land by whatever means necessary, genocide, domicide, cultural genocide, and the continued re-writing and denial of Palestinian history.
I want to believe Carter had good intentions and perhaps he did. The cynic in me says that he knew exactly what was happening, that the agreements would provide the Palestinians nothing of substance and that Carter's actions were to show that the US was putting forth a serious effort at establishing peace. It was political theater and nothing more. If I'm wrong I'd like to be shown how any of the actions described in the book - or the book itself - have changed things for the better. Maybe it's inspired someone to read further, then great. But I would never recommend this book as a starting point for clear understanding.
Follow October 22, 2022 التقييمات على الكتب من النوع ده بتتقدر بحجم الاستفادة من المعلومات-اللي كانت نوعا ما جيده هنا- وترتيب المعلومات بشكل سلس والربط ما بين الأحداث والشواهد واللى كانت أقل إلى حد ما في الكتاب. non-fictionفي-مكتبتيمترجمات 6 likes=== Amazon Review ===
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5.0 out of 5 stars O caminho para a pazReviewed in Brazil on 19 August 2014 Verified Purchase Excelente leitura para compreender o conflito na Palestina. Como protagonista nas negociações de paz, Jimmy Carter apresenta o caminho para conquistá-la, os erros da política americana para a região e a opressão que sofre o povo palestino. Report Translate review to English
Sandra Morris
5.0 out of 5 stars Carter's personal, fascinating history with Israel, Palestine and the MideastReviewed in the United States on 30 December 2024 Verified Purchase President Carter knew the Holy Land well before he first traveled to Israel as Governor from Georgia. He had been studying and teaching the Bible all his life. He was intimately involved with Israel's early history and knew all of the Prime Ministers. This is a great view of Israel from the beginning through the following decades. There is Insite on the Israeli Palestinian conflict as well as the complexities of politics around the region. It's fascinating history because its written from Carter's personal experience. Report
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5.0 out of 5 stars Balanced, critical and honestReviewed in Spain on 7 October 2024 Verified Purchase The book is a mix of Mr Carter's extensive and intensive personal experiences in the region and with its terrible conflicts, roughly between the early 70s and 2006, and of his personal opinions on the details of the conflict as well as on the conflict in its totality. There's also a chapter included which presents the specific goings-on in each country that has participated.
I very much appreciate Mr Carter's honest highly critical view of both, Israeli and US politics. He's of course also condemning the violence coming from the Palestinian and Arab players but he's openly demanding the Israelis to change course and, as a condition for peace, go start complying with the various resolutions and agreements they've broken over all these years - something many, if not most, other observers from Western countries apparently don't dare to say. Report
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5.0 out of 5 stars AuthenticReviewed in Canada on 14 November 2023 Verified Purchase President Carter writes with clarity and authenticity. I have few words to describe the immense impact he has on my understanding of the situation even today, 17 years later. I highly recommend this book.
5.0 out of 5 stars Jimmy deserves the Profile in Courage Award for telling the truth.Reviewed in France on 23 July 2017 Verified Purchase Jimmy Carter has been unfairly denigrated, and even trashed for speaking in first hand experience § telling the truth. He has always worked for peace § justice. I really enjoyed Jimmy's thoughful analysis of an incredibly complex situation. I highly recommend this well-written, clear, fair, balanced § very informative book. Beyond the title, read Jimmy's book with an open mind. Report
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4.0 out of 5 stars 実情理解に役立つReviewed in Japan on 23 September 2014 Verified Purchase 大統領時代も含め中東和平問題の解決を自己の課題として取り組んできた誠実な人物による、和平交渉の歴史。少し古い著作だが、交渉当事者の人物像も含めよく書かれており、興味深く、現時点でも説得性のある議論だと思う。一点疑問なのは、イスラエルに対する米国の資金軍事援助が和平への障壁となっているが、それについてはブッシュ父大統領の時代に違法入植拡大に抗議するため援助を一次凍結したとの記述のみ。自分が大統領の時にもこの問題には手を付けず、記述がないのは不自然な気がした。
5.0 out of 5 stars IT CAN'T GO ON LIKE THISReviewed in the United Kingdom on 10 January 2007 Verified Purchase When I hear criticism of Israel in Europe I sometimes wonder how Britain or France would behave if they suffered terrorist violence to the extent that Israel does and if they had mouthy local demagogues announcing that their state ought to be wiped off the map. I suspect they would behave a lot worse than Israel does. However while the climate of debate remains comparatively rational there is no taboo against criticising Israel. The content of this book is not greatly controversial to European ideas, but in America matters are otherwise. I have seen a certain amount of American comment on it, some of the commentators preferring to read each other rather than the book, and I would advise prospective readers that a great deal of the comment is not to be believed. If the topic were anything else, the shrillness of the tone would alert anyone who is alert in the first place to suspect that the problem with the book is not that it is anti this that or the next thing, but that it is uncomfortably near the bone for some people's liking.
Mr Carter's tone throughout is dispassionate to the point of dryness. He mainly reserves his conclusions for the end, but here and there in the earlier chapters, as in his semi-didactic novel of the American civil war The Hornet's Nest, he highlights certain observations in a manner that invites readers to draw our own conclusions. This is most marked in his summation of Arafat's failure to respond to an opportunity and to raise his game from that of leader of an uprising to being leader of a prospective nation, and Mr Carter quietly but explicitly blames himself for failing to get a better text on the occupied Palestinian lands incorporated in the Camp David accords. The book is short, the print is clear and the author clearer still, although one would hardly think so from much of what poses as commentary. In terms of accuracy I haven't tried to verify the minutiae, but Carter was always one for detail and while it would be unlikely that there are no errors any that I have seen alleged, other than grandiose denunciations of the whole book for manifest incredibility, are small beer. In particular his accounts of the conditions that Palestinians live under are familiar stuff on European news broadcasts, and not just those of the BBC either but the commercial channels too. This is the sort of content that raises an outcry in America - it is intolerable emotionally and therefore must not be allowed to be true.
At the very least it has to be conceded (you might think, but of course this is the topic it is and abnormal criteria apply to what has to be conceded) that Carter is in a position to know more about the topic of this book than any other American. Knowledge of any subject doesn't, obviously, compel agreement with the knowledgeable party's conclusions, but it should at least make anyone hesitate before criticising him on such grounds, whereas in fact many have rushed in to do so and are probably rushing still as I write, much as the Gadarene Swine were doubtless rushing to refute the outrageous teachings they had just overheard. To invoke a different culture, the Emperor's clothes are just marvellous and to say otherwise is to be guilty of an ignorant and biased rant. So with Mr Carter. In my own view to find anything particularly contentious about his findings, still less anything biased in his tone or style, one has first to be American. He was an odd misfit among the tradition of American presidents, he was a bit of a misfit in the job, but a lot of the long-term value of his perceptions is precisely that he didn't think in a conventional American way. America is my own second home and I love it dearly, but for sheer sterility in its political thinking at this stage of history one might search the globe in vain for its equal.
Housman outraged classical scholars by heading his edition of Juvenal 'Edited for the use of editors'. Carter may similarly be thought to outrage a segment of his compatriots' perceptions by issuing a work for education of Americans. The situation they seem wedded to simply can't go on as it is. Mr Carter has a deep religious faith that I can't share, whereas I do share the candid opinion of the last British ambassador to Washington Sir Christopher Meyer that the 'Road Map' to middle east peace, which Carter still embraces, is not worth the paper it's written on. Simply - if nations try to determine land-rights on the basis of who God says can have them then we have the formula for a never-ending dispute, as God talks in mysterious ways. Again, if Palestinians are expected to recognise the legitimate existence of Israel (as we all should) exactly what 'Israel' are they being asked to recognise? West Bank settlements on lands to which they may own legal deeds? Israel's right to secure borders should be indisputable in general, but how can this apply to borders on someone else's land? The questions continue, and Carter dissects them coolly.
Equally beyond dispute ought to be that attacks on civilians are plain crime. In ordinary life we don't stop trying to smooth out areas of dispute until all criminals renounce their ways or until someone promises to stop them, as unrealistic a promise as was ever demanded except, apparently, in Palestine. Nor do we usually think we can solve disputes by refusing to talk with those in dispute with us until they capitulate to our demands to start with, a long-standing anomaly of US foreign policy that Carter highlights, no doubt in a ranting and anti-US manner that I have not detected.
Total support for Israel is emotional in America, and also historical from the days when Israel was America's foothold in the area to combat whatever the USSR might have been doing. An older and firmer tradition of American foreign policy is that its basis in sentiment falters when strategic and commercial interests indicate otherwise, as they now do. If the strategic and commercial lobbies in Washington are not already patiently at work indicating a new direction I shall be very surprised indeed. Support for the Israel of Ben Gurion was one thing, but if I were Israeli and expecting eternal American support for condominiums on the West Bank the question that I would dread to think American might ask themselves would be the question - WHY?
5.0 out of 5 stars BellissimoReviewed in Italy on 27 September 2016 Verified Purchase L'autore del libro è da ricordare sicuramente per essere stato uno dei pochi presidenti degli usa con la testa sulla spalle. Dimostra ancora di essere una persona valida scrivendo un libro scomodo invece di starsene in poltrona a bere il té.
5.0 out of 5 stars The Unvarnished TruthReviewed in Canada on 17 January 2011 Verified Purchase Want to know the REAL truth behind the Israeli-Palestinian conflict? Then read this book. Take it from a man who knows - Jimmy Carter. What's truly perplexing is that the Jews are marginalizing & bullying & brutalizing the Palestinians in exactly the same manner that they themselves were treated by the Nazis in WW2. You would think they would have learned better after having gone through what they did. What's going on over there is a crying shame & it must stop if there is ever going to be any peace in the Arab world. Read this book & you decide : Who's the real villain?.
5.0 out of 5 stars I've witnessed the OccupationReviewed in the United States on 3 December 2006 Verified Purchase If only Americans could begin with a tabula rasa, our mental slates wiped clean of the clutter of propaganda that we have absorbed from our news media, we could read Jimmy Carter's "Palestine Peace Not Apartheid" and finally understand the source of the problem in the Middle East: Israel's relentless theft of Palestinian land, and its collective punishment of the entire population. If only. Alas, most supporters of Israel will not read this book (but that won't prevent them from posting one-star reviews on Amazon).
President Carter, of course, is more diplomatic in discussing the history of the conflict, preferring words like "confiscation" instead of "theft." While he mentions the destruction of 420 Palestinian villages in the war of 1948, Carter doesn't mention what Shlomo Ben-Ami, a former Foreign Minister of Israel, called "the atrocities and massacres it [the Israeli army] perpetrated against the civilian Arab community."
Nonetheless, Carter's Palestine is an amazingly succinct and compelling account of the conflict, especially the events since his election in 1976. Particularly fascinating are his accounts of conversations with Arab leaders such as Yasir Arafat, Hafez al-Assad (Syria), Anwar Sadat (Egypt), and King Hussein (Jordan), which allow the reader to see the conflict from the Arab leaders' perspectives. President Assad's interpretation of the conflict, on pages 72-80, presents the most concise version I have seen of the other side of the story, the side rarely seen in the United States. Readers who desire a more detailed and scholarly history should consider "Palestine and the Arab-Israeli Conflict" by Charles Smith, or "The Gun and the Olive Branch", by David Hirst.
While many Americans will be shocked by Carter's declarations about Israel's deplorable treatment of Palestinians in the Occupied Territories, I can personally attest to many of the facts. Carter writes, "In addition to punitive demolitions, Israel had razed even more Palestinian homes in `clearing' operations, plus houses that Israel claimed were built without a permit." While visiting the West Bank last year, I saw the Israeli military bulldoze three Palestinian homes because of the planned construction of what President Carter calls - in the most accurate description I have seen - the "imprisonment wall". Euphemistically termed the "security barrier" by a compliant American press, the wall is used to imprison Palestinians in bantustans that are separated from the rest of Palestine and often from their own land. Palestinians in Bethlehem, surrounded by the wall, cannot travel the five miles to Jerusalem, while foreigners like me visit from 5,000 miles away.
According to Carter, international rights organizations estimate that 20 percent of the Palestinian population has been imprisoned at some time by the Israelis. My taxi driver, a Christian Palestinian, said that he was imprisoned at age 16 for throwing stones, a symbolic act of protest during the first intifada. A year later, Israeli soldiers broke his arm after stopping him and finding out that he had been in prison.
Israel's ethnic cleansing of Christians and Muslims from Jerusalem is camouflaged in a blanket of legalese such as "building permits" and "identification cards." The Palestinian Christian who cleaned my room at the hotel had been imprisoned for working in Jerusalem "without a Jerusalem ID." Though his wife and children were born in Jerusalem, he grew up in a small nearby town where there are no jobs. At the time of his arrest, on the day his third child was born, he was working in the Christian quarter of the Old City, which is in Occupied Territory.
This important book solidifies Jimmy Carter's standing as the most honest and forthright statesman of our time. While he feels he did the right thing in settling for a separate peace treaty between Egypt and Israel, rather than a comprehensive agreement that included the Palestinians, he presents Assad's opposing view that Sadat betrayed the Arabs. Carter admits that his biggest mistake at Camp David was "failure to clarify in writing Begin's verbal promise" to cease building settlements in the Occupied Territories. Begin soon broke that promise.
Although most of the facts presented by Carter are readily verifiable, I wish that he had presented footnotes for the source of some specific details. For example, on page 206 he states that 708 Palestinian children and 123 Israeli children were killed between September 2000 and March 2006. However, B'tselem, the respected Israeli human rights group, reports that Israeli security forces killed 801 Palestinian children, while Palestinians killed 39 Israeli minors from 9/29/2000 to 11/15/2006.
I also wish that Carter had included some photographs in the book. The photograph on the front cover, depicting a peaceful protest at the three-story high imprisonment wall, says more than any description can accomplish. Israeli police routinely attack and disperse with tear gas such demonstrations at the wall, beating and arresting protestors. According to a witness at one demonstration, organized as non-violent, a protestor began throwing stones. When a leader of the protest tried to stop it, he was arrested -- by the stone-thrower, who was an undercover Israeli policeman.
"Palestine" is a short book of facts, devoid of sermonizing and analysis, easily digestible in a few hours. The book merely relates what happened in the recent past and what is happening now - facts that are only controversial because they haven't been reported by the mainstream news media. The facts lead to the obvious conclusions that Carter makes on the final page: "Peace will come to Israel and the Middle East only when Israel is willing to comply with international law," and the United States is encouraging anti-American terrorism by "condoning or abetting the Israeli confiscation and colonization of Palestinian territories."
Jimmy Carter's "Palestine Peace Not Apartheid" gives me optimism that more people will learn the truth. If only people will read it.
5.0 out of 5 stars Very goodReviewed in Germany on 1 May 2017 Verified Purchase This is an honest account of the situation. If you want to hear the truth - you should read this book.
5.0 out of 5 stars A much-needed book - thanks Jimmy Carter !Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 12 January 2007 Verified Purchase I've read many books on the Palestine - Israel problem, and this is the best. Very readable, very informative, and gaining authority(and interest)from the honesty and personal experiences of the author. This is a brave book for a prominent American to write, for it's guarenteed to receive criticism from all those in the USA for whom Israel can do no wrong. The book is not an anti-Israeli or anti-Jewish tract, and fully upholds Israel's right to live securely within internationally accepted borders - it's a sane and balanced presentation of the facts, covering the formation of Israel, the wars, the various peace efforts, the futility and tragedy of Palestinian violence, and the reality of an Israeli (and often American) policy which makes long-term peace impossible. The illegal land-grab, control of vital resources such as water, deliberate sabotage of peace efforts, refusal to abide by U.N. resolutions, daily humiliation heaped upon Palestinian civilians, and devastating effects of the Wall, are all carefully documented, and of course this must annoy those who support Israeli policy no matter what that country does. He shows conclusively (pp. 150-152) that the idea that Arafat rejected a great peace offer from Clinton and Barak is simply an oft-repeated lie, and the few pages (116-127) dealing with Palestinian civilian suffering is the best summary I've come across. He doesn't overplay the title's "apartheid" reference, and makes it clear that this separate development is motivated by land rather than race, but when he points out how " a Jewish family can commute from Jerusalem to their highly subsidised home deep in the West Bank on roads from which others are excluded, without ever coming into contact with any facet of Arab life" I think he makes the point. This book deserves the highest praise. If you're interested in the Middle East, buy it ! And get your friends to read it.
5.0 out of 5 stars Gutes, unaufgeregtes Buch über die Geschichte des Palästina-Israel-Konfiktes aus der Sicht eines amerikanischen Präsidenten:Reviewed in Germany on 7 August 2014 Verified Purchase Sehr interessant ist der kurze Abschnitt über die Friedensverhandlungen am Ende des Buches, denen Carter teilweise beigewohnt hat. Kein Wort
5.0 out of 5 stars Palestine: Peace Not ApartheidReviewed in France on 22 August 2012 Verified Purchase Very rich and insightful book. Thank you for having written it, Pres. Carter. People need to read this and realize how complex and difficult this problem is.
5.0 out of 5 stars Honest and truthfulReviewed in the United Kingdom on 23 March 2007 Verified Purchase In a world where any expressed level of understanding of Palestinian frustration is perceived as condoning violence and supporting terrorism, and any criticism of Israili Government policy branded as anti-Semetic this is a brave book to write. Not in biased praise or blindly critical of either side at last a book honest and more importantly, unashamedly truthful about Palestine. Easy to read and follow if a novice, as well as being concise and focused if a scholar on the subject. Jimmy Carter writes with factual clarity and backs up everything with concrete evidence. When I'd finished reading this book I had regained a bit of hope that possibly there was a chance that we might wake up and persuade our own media to stop the spin and political leaders to follow through with all the energy they promised to dedicate to Palestine. Thank you Jimmy Carter
5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent first hand account of historyReviewed in the United States on 2 May 2008 Verified Purchase This is an informative book on the Palestinian situation. Just the historical chronology, the related maps on different dates, and the Appendices including the text of U.N. Resolutions provide excellent reference material.
Carter's "land for peace" premise is straightforward as expressed on page 17. He believes the Israeli-Palestinian conflict will be resolved when: 1) Palestinians and other Arab countries will fully recognize Israel; 2) Violence and terrorism against civilians in Israel will abate; and 3) Palestinians will live in peace and dignity in their own land. He repeats those conditions in the concluding Summary. Within it he also specifies that Israel has to explicitly recognize its borders before 1967 as it had agreed within U.N. Resolution 242. Carter also states that the chronic obstacle to those conditions for peace is the belief by many Israelis that "they have the right to confiscate ...Palestinian land and try to justify the ... persecution of ... hopeless... Palestinians." "Some Palestinians react by honoring suicide bombers as martyrs... and consider the killing of Israelis as victories." Carter also adds that a major obstacle to peace has been the U.S. passivity towards the issue and its unconditional supportive bias towards Israel no matter what its behavior. As he states: "because of powerful political, economic, and religious forces in the U.S., Israeli government decisions are rarely questioned." There are many books on this subject, including The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy and The Power of Israel in the United States .
Carter notes that "most American citizens are unaware of circumstances in the occupied territories." His purpose is to educate the American public to the plight of the Palestinians. He wants to trigger a domestic debate to foster understanding that should allow America to facilitate permanent peace in the region. America has to be perceived as a fair mediator by the Arab world. Carter hopes the info he imparts will get us to reach a fairer assessment.
Since his Presidency in 1977, Carter's life as a peace waging diplomat has been closely intertwined with the contemporary history of the Middle East and the Israel-Palestinian conflict in particular. Carter's first hand narrative of the Camp David Accords in 1978 that he brokered between Sadat (Egypt) and Begin (Israel) is fascinating as described in chapter 3. He has known the majority of the current and previous generation of Middle Eastern leaders on a first name basis. He shares such firsthand accounts within chapters 4 and 5 including these leaders' detailed perspective on the conflict. In the next few chapters, he analyzes all four succeeding White House Administrations handling of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Unlike former Presidents, he remains engaged at every step by facilitating diplomatic meetings, attending political conferences, monitoring elections, implementing humanitarian projects through his Carter Center while maintaining his contacts with Middle Eastern leaders.
Carter having observed the treatment of Palestinians firsthand thinks it fits the definition of apartheid precisely (separation of people from their homeland). In chapter 16 "The Wall of Prison" he is alarmed at how the Israelis built this huge wall around the West Bank encroaching and seizing Palestinian lands (see map pg. 191) separating some Palestinians from their own families and agricultural lands. He feels that the Israelis have imprisoned Palestinians.
Currently, there are books by established political scientists suggesting that despair and poverty are not the root of terrorism such as What Makes a Terrorist: Economics and the Roots of Terrorism (Lionel Robbins Lectures) . In some cases, I may be inclined to agree. But, not here. The Palestinians lack of any human rights, comfort, and peace of mind combined with chronic Israeli land grab and military provocations leave them with little recourse but to lash out violently. Carter repeatedly denounces terrorism. But, he recognizes what triggers it.
This book is controversial as Jewish scholars accused Carter of being wrong on many counts. They compiled their rebuttals in a book: Bearing False Witness: Jimmy Carter's Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid . But, the latter stronger assertion is that Carter misinterpreted the key U.N. resolution 242, where the authors believe Carter falsely claimed that Israel had been required to cede the lands acquired in 1967. But, U.N. resolution 242 written in 1967 states " (i) Withdrawal of Israel armed forces from territories occupied in the recent conflict [1967 6-day-war]." Carter is right. Additionally, Carter practices full disclosure by publishing the literal text of key UN. Resolutions and peace accords. So, you can check the wording for yourself. I double checked the veracity of those texts that are accessible on line, and they all paned out.
Carter is the only Western leader who had contacts with Hamas that now runs the Palestinian government. His narratives suggest they are more moderate than the Media conveys. For visiting Hamas, Carter has been ostracized for collaborating with terrorists. But, as a result of his undertaking dialogue with Hamas they seem more open to peace negotiations than the Israelis are.
In the conclusion, Carter derives hope for peace by observing that polls of both Israelis and Palestinians show a majority of the population favoring a two-State solution as a condition for peace. But, the chronic refusal of Israel's political leadership to honor the terms of U.N. Resolution 242 represents an obstacle to peace in the region.
Anyone who is emotionally detached from this issue will recognize this is a rare document of history. L. Carl Brown with Foreign Affairs gave this book an excellent review. Also, Jimmy Carter Man from Plains is an interesting documentary on his U.S. book tour.
4.0 out of 5 stars Carter's Dramatic Insight on the Palestinian QuestionReviewed in the United States on 12 March 2007 Verified Purchase Former President Jimmy Carter's most recent discussion of the problems presented by the Arab-Israeli Conflict and a sagging peace process, "Palestine Peace Not Apartheid," has already served a necessary and productive purpose; it has renewed focus on this vital part of the politics of the Middle East. This may not be the best and most all inclusive work on the subject, but it does what Carter intended. It presents a very readable and succinct overview of the peace-process and what he considers to be the obstacles to that process. Sadly, he is right in his dramatic use of the word and concept "apartheid." Walls do not always make good neighbors, more often than not though they are indicators of political failure. He is also correct in his suggestion that the United States has failed in the role of honest broker. Having just returned from Jordan, this writer can attest to how the Palestinians look to the United States to make a new and dramatic move to break the log-jam in this conflict. The road to peace must go back to Jerusalem. President Carter is also correct in his suggestion that the real key to bringing stability to the entire region must begin with this the longest on-going war in the world, not by squandering vital energy in Iraq. And indeed, what may be needed is an American recognition of an independent state of Palestine, now and without preconditions. There are few voices who can be trusted on this subject, and even fewer former (or current) American presidents who can speak with authority, if not some actual success, regarding the peace process. President Carter remains the only American executive with anything resembling a positive record regarding the Arab-Israeli Conflict, and has continued to be an important force for a just peace in the area in his later years. Ironically, here is a president that has and continues to be more effective out of office than the individual actually in office regarding peace in the Middle East. President Carter's book is a good place for the average American to begin for a basic understanding of the problems presented by the conflict in the Middle East. And begin they should for this issue now concerns all of us.
4.0 out of 5 stars Four StarsReviewed in Canada on 15 August 2014 Verified Purchase Very educational & pertinent to what is happening in the world today.
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Elleppi
4.0 out of 5 stars A deep and refreshing analysis of the question. Some might not like it but I suggest to read it without prejudiceReviewed in the United Kingdom on 2 September 2015 Verified Purchase A book that generated many controversies and quarrels about the subject and the simple, straightforward approach to it by the former President of USA. It is about the pointless unresolved Palestine question, which he does not underestimate but also does not tolerate it can still be unresolved now that we live in the 3rd millennium. Carter has been maybe the finest and most committed American President, talking about peace, a just global balance of power and a less selfish role of America in a changing world. He often addressed his people about not thinking to be better, superior and more important than the rest of the world, and that is why he was not re-elected, because he spoke the truth and the truth is not acceppted when it questions a long-time tradition of patriottism and self-celebration. And with the same courage he tackled with this really hard subject and took an unpopular position, at least to the eyes of his country, a longtime partner of Israel. But the point is that he needed to question all the unquestioned clichè about that conflict and the rights and wrongs of the 2 middle east people, to refresh the approach to the matter, showing the american people that most historical and more recent aspects of that story have been always told in a biased way, like to protect and support Israel but, in the long terms, ending up putting that very people in his own trap, instead of facing all the sides of the truth and urging for a real change of the situation. To see what happened after this book, please also watch the excellent documentary made by Jonathan Demme (The Silence of the Lambs, Philadelphia, etc...) who followed Carter in his tour to present the book, and revealed the man (a great and honest man) behind the president
5.0 out of 5 stars President Cartner struck a chordReviewed in the United States on 3 December 2006 Verified Purchase Jimmy Carter struck a chord
All of us suffer from assumptions in our thinking we cannot detect, but whether President Carter's facts are correct and whether his arguments are free of bias, I doubt even he knows for sure. That's not the point. His presentation is clear and his message encouraging. He asks us to engage in a national dialogue. It's long overdue.
Although he doesn't put it this way, I have the sense President Carter believes that we humans fall under some sort of spell or mass sleep (the only logical explanation for the state of human affairs). Since Israel is populated by people, like all nations everywhere, they are no different in that regard. President Carter's book is, in this reader's opinion, as much about human behavior and our generic condition as it is about politics, justice, and the wielding of power.
Honest debate?
Without putting words into a good man's mouth, Americans should wonder why a powerful nuclear-armed nation is routinely positioned as a victim in the U.S. press. We should ask if it's true that Israel bulldozes homes in the middle of the night, fires on kids throwing rocks, engages in abductions and assassinations, builds networks of settlements connected by restricted roads intended to breakup and render useless Palestinian lands. We should ask if Israel really does ignore United Nations resolutions condemning its behavior and why the United State's routinely invokes its veto power to protect Israel from the world's admonitions.
And,
We should question why a small nation of 6.3 million people (less than the population of New York City) wields such incredible power over the largest economy on Earth, and why, despite all arguments to the contrary, virtually all elected and want-to-be elected U.S. officials grant her unconditionally support.
In that regard, citizens should demand to know why our government allows any foreign nation to exert power over our elections, media coverage, and internal decision-making processes, and why our laws allow foreign states to control U.S. based lobbying organizations. We should debate whether Israel's lobby (the largest in the world) is effectively funded by U.S. tax dollars which are then amplified by serving Israel's agenda to affect U.S. actions and policies while ensuring that Israel-borne messaging is kept near the top of editors' topical priorities.
Americans should write their elected representatives, who presumably could enact laws preventing the continual hijacking of the American electorate. We should tell them not to be paralyzed by fear of speaking out even though they may be targeted as holocaust deniers, anti-Semites, or more practically, outspent and out-marketed.
More positively,
Many Americans wonder why a civilized nation of good and truly gifted people cannot find a path to peace by applying the same ingenious minds and leadership skills that accomplished the following:
1) turned a desert into the region's only thriving (and non-oil-based) economy, 2) created the region's only democracy, 3) created the only social infrastructure governed by law and due-process in the region, 4) created the region's only culturally open-minded society (counter-intuitive, but for the majority of Israeli citizens, it's true),...
Obviously, this list is much larger and more impressive.
Many wonder, in admiration, how these community and family-oriented people, surrounded by adversaries wishing and acting for their demise, could with limited resources, manage to accomplish the aforementioned in so short a time (less than 60 years).
For starters, Americans (any everyone else) should ask why we are ridiculously phobic with respect to other people's genes, politics, and religions. If we could get over that, we might be able to honestly consider whether Israel has ever acted as an equal in its long struggle to exist, to be at peace, and to flourish amidst its enemies. If she had been an equal, she would probably be long gone. Perhaps Americans,through honest debate, can ask whether Israel should recognize her superior position and act toward the Palestinians like the leader she is. She should ask if she could harvest the exceptional talent pool she has fostered with the aim of discovering a way to build the bridges that are required, and then lift up the Palestinians to an equal footing. They are just as smart and capable, but need a peaceful generation to secure their chance.
Sometimes the other side is unable to meet halfway. Sometimes it doesn't matter who started a war or how many wrongs and good gestures can be marked on each side.
Perhaps Israel will recognize her role as knowledge agent, infrastructure provider, guide, and benefactor.
Americans should not be afraid to discuss the plight of the Palestinians, who now, seem virtually destroyed, disheartened, and in never-ending anguish. Only Israel can help them by using its considerable strength and imagination to create whatever is needed for positive change. The United States will lend its support (lobby or not) to ensure her great experiment survives despite the odds.
But Americans should debate.
If we do, we can re-become the nation of fair play we once believed in and died for in two world wars.
I think President Carter believes that too. He should be applauded for his insights, forgiven for his errors, and commended for his bravery.
5.0 out of 5 stars Well BalancedReviewed in the United Kingdom on 6 November 2012 Verified Purchase This book arrived Monday and I finished it today (Tuesday). I am of an age which allows me to remember a lot of what is covered. To be honest I thought at first it was going to be another whitewash job. However, further into the book I changed my mind. Jimmy Carter has given a remarkably well balanced account of the troubles in the Middle East. Where a lot of people might feel the criticism of the Israeli behavior and attitude is too harsh they are reading with a biased mind. Carter lays blame where it is due and is critical of both sides in equal measure. A very good overall picture of what has gone badly wrong and offers a political solution. I would gladly recommend this book to any one wanting to learn about recent middle east history written with the flair of a novelist that makes the facts easy to absorb.
5.0 out of 5 stars Best book ever written to get the insight from Jimmy Carter's personal experience on MidEastReviewed in the United States on 13 October 2009 Verified Purchase First thing first, people who are saying that this book is anti Semite/anti Israel have either not read the book or have missed the point completely. My understanding of anti Semite/anti Israel is someone/action who/which does not accept the EXISTENCE of either Jews or Israel. Just criticizing someone of injustice is not something anti. It is just a attention brought to the public that something is not right and we should correct it. Thats all. If we criticize Bush admin, does that mean we are anti US? No, we are US citizens, we work hard and hate to see injustice taking place anywhere in the world. That is why every country in the world look up to US for help. If Martin Luther King rose to the occasion and openly discussed racism against African Americans, does that mean he was anti US or Anti Whites? If Gandhi would not have spoken against the British, we would not have such freedom in India or sub continent. If Nelson Mandela, spoke of apartheid in South Africa, does that mean he doesn't love his country? I highly recommend Marianne Williamson lecture "Standing up to the Darkness" for every US and Canadian Citizens. You all should know that Jimmy Carter was the main person who brought peace between Israel and Egypt in 1979. And he has visited Israel and met the delegates on many occasions (and continue to meet). So he is in a better position to present his experience than most of us. Many of us have not even met Palestinians or Israeli delegates that many times in our lives than Mr. Carter. Not only that Jimmy Carter have also won the Noble Peace Prize in 2002 for his efforts to bring peace to troubled countries. Also youtube his videos and you will see that he is a noble man and dedicated to peace in the world.
On to the book, the book is REAL LIFE experience. No reference, no assumptions purely based on experience. Carter does not go around keep on bashing Israelis, if you read it even a 10th grader can see that he also criticizes Arab countries for not making effort towards peace. He just doesn't targets Israel. It is a very enjoyable book. In fact very few books which can take my imagination to work and help me visualize the Dead Sea, Tel Aviv, Jerusalem etc visually. Definitely a must read for each and everyone in the world. No one should take this book as a personal attack. There is nothing controversial about it. Carter shares his journey from 70s till 2006 elections in Palestine. He also talks mildly about the Jewish Lobby AIPAC and pressures they put on congress and politicians. For further details in this topic, "Israel Lobby and US Foreign Policy" is the best book and some must watch videos at the bottom in my reviews.
He also talks about the change in Israeli thought process with the progress of time. It is quite beautifully presented. His meetings with Yasir Arafat (former PLO leader). Injustice to Palestinian farmers and West Bank wall. Elections in Palestine. In case some of you don't know Carter organization, on o request from the troubled country request, goes and monitor the fair elections. According to Carter Hamas's win in 2006 was the most democratic elections he have monitored in years. The issues with Jordan, Syria, Iran etc. All presented in the book in details. If you are really serious about peace in the world, then this is the book you should read. It is a very easy read as well. Read it and make public aware. This is the best we all can do is educate our self and educate others. Enjoy and Peace.
The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy Imperial Hubris: Why the West is Losing the War on Terror
Youtube videos every North American Citizen should watch: Confessions of an Economic Hit Man Greta Van Susteren James Traficant
5.0 out of 5 stars Five StarsReviewed in Canada on 10 February 2017 Verified Purchase Very nice thank you Report
Mo
5.0 out of 5 stars A brave manReviewed in the United Kingdom on 6 September 2008 Verified Purchase No one on earth would know what's going on behind the closed curtains of politics like an american president and no one has dedicated more time and effort to the complex issue of the middle east like Jimmy Carter. From here comes the gravity of this book; it's written by a man who knows. At any point I didn't find the book anti-semetic.It's more like a list or logical sequence of events we all read about. It allows you to see a trend and link past and present events. The only "mistake" this man has ever done is speaking the truth and exposing a polished ugly face that is too scary to stare at.The question is CAN WE AFFORD THE TRUTH??
5.0 out of 5 stars CARTER'S BRAVE & AUTHORITATIVE TESTIMONYReviewed in the United States on 14 November 2006 Verified Purchase In contrast with the majority of his Republican and Democratic colleagues (who recently passed a shameful anti-Palestinian legislation which adds insult to the injury of Israel's victims) ,President Carter is a distinguished and honourable American statesman who , by telling the truth as it is, deserves the admiration and gratitude of all those on the Palestinian and Israeli sides who support peace with justice in the Holy Lands.
Genuine peace is conditioned on Israel making political/financial amend for its original sin of brutal dispossession against the Palestinians which continues today , and at last recognizing the right of Palestinians to a state of their own where they can live/move freely and finally get out of their Israeli imposed prisoner/underclass status. Only by doing so will Israel gain moral legitimacy amongst civilized people everywhere, including its Arab neighbours, who are nauseated by its relentless propaganda of eternal and only victim even whilst it is cruelly oppressing another people : legitimacy will lead to a genuine and long term peace for the benefit of Jews, Christians and Moslems throughout the Middle East and the rest of the world.
By bravely condemning Israel's brutal occupation, thieving apartheid policies and callous victimization of entire Palestinian populations, (with its daily harvest of unreported atrocities)President Carter's book is a breath of fresh air in the middle of relentless zionist propaganda and lies against its victims and critics.
He joins a long list of distinguished American, Palestinian, Jewish and Israeli journalists and researchers who have eloquently reported Israeli atrocities and abuses in the Occupied Territories. Gideon Levy recently described the Israeli Army's daily rampage against a defenseless Palestinian population in Gaza as "killing and demolishing, bombing and shelling indiscriminately".
In a recent letter to his brother Alexander (Counterpunch)Patrick Cockburn wrote: "In Gaza, the Israelis have destroyed 70 percent of the orange groves; stopped the fishermen from going out in their boats, destroyed the central power station. More than 50 percent of the population is out of work, and per capita income is less than $2 a day.
Jennifer Loewenstein, of the Middle Eastern studies program at the Unversity of Wisconsin at Madison, has visited Gaza many times and written powerfully about it on the CounterPunch website:"If people received genuine information about Gaza they would be appalled-and that's of course why any real information about it is prevented from getting out. In addition, if the Israeli blockade of virtually all human traffic into Gaza were to end and more visitors could actually get in, more people-including freelance journalists-would be outraged, or stunned into disbelief at what Israel with US and EU backing has done to that miserable strip of land.
Therefore, some of the slanderous accusations and comments made against the former US President on this site and elsewhere , including Kenneth Stein's smearful resignation letter from the Carter Institute, are simply outrageous. Stein, another Israel can do no wrong apologist, shamelessly slanders the former President but provides NO FACTS to support his baseless accusations and no email address to which people who know the historical facts, have read the book and totally disagree with him can respond. Carter's book is a welcome and authoritative contribution to the historical truth on who continues to brutally occupy whose land and who continues to block a peaceful solution of the conflict namely Israel, regretfully with Washington's support and/or complicity.
This distinguished statesman and honourable American has the courage to put the onus of a peaceful solution on the arrogant/greedy Israeli Occupier and his Washington supporters.
Thank you Jimmy Carter for being the noble and human face of America which still believes in human rights,elementary justice and the TRUTH!
5.0 out of 5 stars Very goodReviewed in the United Kingdom on 27 December 2013 Verified Purchase Some major historical vents are mentioned for those who don't know the Middle East. President Carter' views and opinion expressed in this book are unfortunetly not been widley exposed oin the media (USA, Europe) because they were, although objectively expressed, critical against Israel which is not only ignoring the UN resolutions but also using arms wich are prohibited by international laws. Israel is fast to condemn those who don't respect them but they apply to them they constantly defy the whole world and the whole world doesn't dare criticise them. I recommend this book for everybody, old and young.
5.0 out of 5 stars Very Informative and Engaging to ReadReviewed in the United States on 24 July 2024 Verified Purchase I have read many of President Carter's books and always find them very informative and engaging to read. This book gives historical background on Palestine and the many attempts to find a solution to peace in that region. I thought the book was well balanced and gave me good insight into the different issues on this subject. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to better understand the issues in that region and on Palestine in particular.
5.0 out of 5 stars Five StarsReviewed in Canada on 28 February 2015 Verified Purchase Book and audio in excellent condition. Report
Jay Jay
5.0 out of 5 stars Went down a treat!Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 9 March 2017 Verified Purchase Purchased for my Father a gift - went down a treat and feedback on the book was positive. Now I need to pinch it back of him to ready it myself :-)
1.0 out of 5 stars Jimmy Carter';s Narrow VisionReviewed in the United States on 26 January 2007 Verified Purchase Review of Jimmy Carter, Palestine Peace Not Apartheid
By Edward Green
The book is essentially a memoir of Jimmy Carter's efforts in trying to resolve Israeli-Palestinian differences. It includes a brief history of the conflict, portraits of the key players, the involvement of other American presidents, and recent developments from the year 2000 to 2006. One cannot help but suspect that Carter must have known that the use of the word apartheid, given its standard meaning, an acute form of racism, and with the fresh memory of the United Nations approval of the resolution, Zionism Equals Racism, would inflame Jews who would throng booksellers to obtain the book and confront their accuser.
The sketchiness of the narrative enables Carter to amplify information favorable to his position and to omit or downplay unfavorable information. Carter issues a stern indictment against Israel for the treatment accorded Palestinians-- the suppression of human rights by physical barriers, checkpoints, naval and air blockades which deny Palestinians fishing and shipping, and access to the outside world. Most egregious of Israeli offenses is the encroachment on land recognized internationally as Palestinian secured by walls and fences, which inexactly follow the line of separation between Israel and Palestine. Constructed on the Palestinian side of the line, the barriers destroy the integrity of communities and farms by cutting through them and gouging inward to accommodate Jewish settlements on the West Bank.
The word apartheid, though part of the book's title, appears only twice in the book, and then near the end, where it signifies the repressive outcome of Israeli policy rather than a legal or guiding principle. The separation of the two peoples, as Carter sees it, is not based on ethnicity but on land, with the Palestinians shunted on to the remnants of a once larger territory recognized by law as legitimately theirs. Carter uses apartheid ambiguously: in one context, a state of apartheid now prevails; in another context, apartheid, still in a nascent stage, is an option, which should be rejected.
No doubt Palestinian interests suffer under existing conditions. Carter puts the blame squarely on a minority of Israelis, mainly settlers and Zionist zealots, who use their political clout to frustrate legitimate Palestinian claims. But Carter also knows that those factions are balanced in Israel's democratic assemblies by equally vocal groups, Briera for example, which demonstrate in support of much of the Palestinian agenda. No such constituency in sympathy with Israel's interests surfaces on the Palestinian side, let alone the whole Arab world, where news of successful terrorist attacks inspires dancing in the streets.
More detrimental to Palestinian interests than anything the Israelis do is their own self-destructiveness, the consequences of which are laid on to the Jews. Carter must surely know of the blatant endemic corruption of the Palestine Authority whose high officials benefit from continuing the standoff with Israel. As reported in the CBS show Sixty Minutes , November 9, 2003, "So far, Prince's [auditing] team has determined that part of the Palestinian leader's [Arafat's] wealth was in a secret portfolio worth close to $1 billion -- with investments in companies like a Coca-Cola bottling plant in Ramallah, a Tunisian cell phone company and venture capital funds in the U.S. and the Cayman Islands." Political rivalries, a policy of unwillingness to come to terms with Israel, encouragement of intifada, praise of martyrdom, and the resulting terrorist attacks have blunted the hope of many Israelis that fruitful negotiations are possible. Understandably the separation that Carter calls apartheid, the denial of Palestinians access to Jewish areas, is perceived on the Israeli side as a long overdue and effective strategy for preventing the entry of Palestinians intent on blowing up Jews.
Carter's scheme for the resolution of the conflict strikes a questionable equivalence between the requirements of the two sides. It proposes, that in exchange for withdrawal from lands seized in the Six Day War in 1967 all Arab neighbors must "pledge to honor Israel's right to live in peace." Israel in negotiations has demonstrated a willingness to accept that proposal. Enough Palestinians and Arabs generally, however, are indoctrinated from early years, in schools and media to act out hatred of Jews, making Arab compliance highly problematic.
In an appearance at Brandeis University, Carter retracted and apologized for statements that imply that it's alright to bomb Israelis until they fall into line Palestinian with demands regarding the Road Map and the witless statement on television (Meet The Press, Tuesday, December 19, 2006) that the misery in Palestine is worse than in Rwanda where an estimated 800,000 helpless people were slain by thug militias. Following are additional expressions of Carter's attitude, including gratuitous slaps, which in their totality betray a mind-set toward Jewish Israel that extends beyond the issues of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.
p. 26 Carter mentions a complaint by Samaritans he met on travels in Israel, that their holy sites were not being respected (how is unspecified) by Israeli authorities. He bolsters the complaint by invoking Jesus and his disciples who heard the same complaint almost two thousand years earlier. Carter should be informed that archaeology is a national passion in Israel and that no nation surpasses Israel in devotion to the protection and preservation of antiquities.
p. 59 In the Six Day War, Carter writes, Israel launched pre-emptive strikes against Egypt, Syria, and then Jordan. The fact is that Israel asked Jordan to stay out of the conflict and did not attack Jordan until Jordan began an assault on Israel to honor its treaty obligations to Egypt. I heard King Hussein say exactly that on TV shortly after the cessation of hostilities.
p. 84-5 Carter discussing Jordan's economic losses from the Six Day War, has another opportunity to say that Jordan hit first, but doesn't take it. In describing the losses in population and income in East Jerusalem and the West Bank, Carter describes them as Jordanian, not Palestinian losses: tacit acknowledgment that eighteen years after the partition of Palestine into Arab and Jewish portions, while under tight Jordanian rule, nationalism had not yet gripped the Palestinian consciousness.
p. 85 Re the civil war in Jordan between Palestinian guerillas and the Jordanian army, Carter says Syrian forces under Defense Minister Assad of Syria refused to attack Jordan's forces and Hussein was able to prevail. The fact is that Syrian forces had already penetrated Jordan to assist the guerillas, but under Israeli threat, withdrew.
p. 95 In the course of Israel's intervention in the Lebanese civil war in 1982, as many as 3500 non-combatant Muslims in the Shatila and Sabra Palestinian refugee camps controlled by Israel's allies were slain, for which, Carter writes, Israeli Defense Minister Ariel Sharon was held accountable. Carter omits to say that the killings were done by Maronite Christian militiamen. Ariel Sharon's role in the matter is controversial. As commander of the Israeli and allied forces, the buck extended to him, but there is no evidence that he sanctioned the killings. He invited Lebanese Phalangist militia units to enter the refugee camps and expel the PLO fighters. Israeli soldiers would remain outside the camp while the Maronite forces under the direct command of Elie Hobeika, who would later become a longtime Lebanese parliament member and also a cabinet minister, entered. The Maronite phalangists exceeded Sharon's orders, slaying an estimated 700-3500.
p. 127 In a stunning non sequitur Carter connects the benefits accorded the deeply religious Jewish parties in Israel, their excuse from military service and funding for benevolent causes, to his understanding "for the first time why there was a surprising exodus of Christians from the Holy Land."
p. 150 Carter's discussion of the negotiations for a settlement of land issues between Yassir Arafat and Ehud Barak refereed by President Bill Clinton gives the clear impression that neither side extended itself in order to reach accommodation. That's not the way Clinton remembers it in his biography: "Barak had shown `particular courage, vision, and understanding," in making concessions and Arafat refused to seize the moment.
5.0 out of 5 stars If former President Jimmy Carter speaks the truth, then Israel is criminal and so are we for backing it.Reviewed in the United States on 17 February 2007 Verified Purchase On Febuary 4th the incomming Israeli Ambassador to the US appeared on C-SPAN, looked into the camera and told the American people point blank that the reson that Americans support Israel is because "we share the same democratic values". I have heard the same for many US politicians such as Sen. Joe Lieberman, Rep. Gary Ackerman, Rep. Tom Lantos, Sen Hillary Clinton, and countless others.
But when I think of "US democratic values" I think of 1863 when President Lincoln addressed the families of 43,000 fallen soldiers at Gettysburg PA when he reduced the event to a "test of our "commitment to the proposition that all men are created equal". Our Consitution with its plain-spoken Bill of Rights, the Civil Rights Act, and our MLK holiday reiterate this country's values that all are equal under the law regardless of race, color, religion, or creed. In other words, an American Democracy is a "democracy for all", and the only resctrictions on who can be a citizen are commitment and loyalty to the country. This is aparently not the case in Israel.
President Carter in his book "Palestine Peace Not Apartheid" tells us that we as a country have been fooled into supporting the very thing that those 43,000 Americans at Gettysburg died to correct. We have been supporting a supremecist society, a "Jewish Democracy" the likes of which David Duke could only dream of. We as a country have funded, supported, and ran interferrence for an Israel whose intentions where not the creation of a country where Jews could escape persecution in Europe and live in a free and democratic society, but rather the establishment of a new South Africa - a society in which ones rights are determined by their bloodline, a society of priviledge and a land of rights denial, separation, and humiliation. Carter documents case after case of innocent Palestinians being denied equality in society, denied freedom of speach, being denied freedom of movement, being denied freedom of association, not because of who they are (christians and muslums), but because of who they aren't ('jews'). He tells stories of Palestinians who can present Ottoman-era titles to their property yet being evacuated from it to create housing for incomming jews, and yet not even being qualified to live in the new housing because it is restricted for jews. He tells of Palestinians being prevented from farming their land, being separated from their jobs, being denied the ability to sell their goods and products and thus being reduced to poverty and despair. He tells us how the Israelis have used the cover of Bush Administration to deny the legitmacy of a Palestinian election, to illegally grab and settle more occupied land, and build an intrusive barrier wall that further separates Palestinian from Palestinian.
Jimmy Carter tells recounts these stories from personal experience, each one researched, documented, and presented to the Israeli government for reply. His credibility in this mattter is undeniable. It makes me absolutely ill to consider that I as an american have disgraced my country's values and the deaths of those 43,000 at Gettysburg by not doing more to personally put a halt to this American-funded Israeli Apartheid. Buy the book, read it, then call your congressmen today and demand action.
5.0 out of 5 stars Finally, a view against the normReviewed in the United States on 17 January 2007 Verified Purchase As a long time student of Middle Eastern studies I welcome President Carter's book with much anticipation and - unlike many others - an open mind. In this book, President Carter does not say things that aren't true. He says things that most people are unaware of and speaks of both the Israelis and Palestinians mistakes in the process. Refreshingly, though, he brings to light the intentional and unintentional mistakes made by the Israelis as well as other nations that place us where we are today; in a world threatened by radical fundamentalist Islamic terrorists. 9/11 happened for a reason, and it's not because they hate our freedom but because of the West's policies regarding the Middle East during the past nearly 100 years, and its policies regarding Israel and the Palestinians in particular.
It is not so much out of a sense of morality that the government of the U.S. has dedicated itself to such a close alliance with Israel. If that were the case then there are a number of other nations to whom we should be allied. For instance, Rwanda in central Africa where Hutu militia massacred Tutsis to the tune of over 800,000 dead within a three month period in 1994. Or the genocide in Cambodia during the late 1970s when upwards of 2,000,000 people were murdered by Pol Pot and his Khmer Rouge (Red Cambodians). These are but two of many more such moral crises that the United States could have helped curtail or even prevent, two nations where out of a sense of moral obligation our government could have and should have been actively involved. But from a strategic and vital national interest perspective the United States chose not to become involved in these crises of immense human proportions.
So much for the morality argument. Hypocritical to say the least.
It is from a sense of strategic importance and a preservation of our vital national interests, i.e. access to cheap and high quality crude oil, that we are so closely allied with Israel. But this alliance comes at a huge cost to the U.S. To help buttress and protect Israel from her enemies in the region, among other alleged reasons, we've invaded Iraq. Twice. I was a part of that first invasion in 1990 as a member of the U.S. Air Force and felt then that our actions were necessary to protect Kuwait and Saudi Arabia from Saddam Hussein. But I knew then as I know now it had nothing to do with freedom and democracy but was and still is about protecting Israel and having access to cheap and high quality oil. Was it necessary then? Yes, from a strategic and vital national interest perspective. Is it necessary now? Well, to paraphrase Colin Powell, we broke it so we own it.
5.0 out of 5 stars The Truth that Dare Not be Spoken in AmericaReviewed in the United States on 22 March 2007 Verified Purchase Not much doubt exists outside the USA that Israel is an apartheid state. Even Israelis are more honest about this than their surrogates in America (as represented by AIPAC, Dershowitz, et al.). And yet it is Mr. Carter's use of the word apartheid that seems to have stuck in the craw of the Israel lobby.
Some telling quotes from Israelis themselves below. But to the substance of the book first.
This is a tepid response to Israeli colonialism and its numerous violations of international laws, most especially in its apartheid policies in the Occupied Territories. The book merits reading only in that it comes from a former President of the USofA. Mr. Carter is quite dishonest when he frequently insists that he uses the word "apartheid" only with respect to the Occupied Territories. Conveniently forgetting the second-class Israel-Palestinians "citizens" who live in Israel proper.
The Israel-Palestinian conflict and its solution are really quite simple, as Mr. Carter points out. Withdrawal of Israel to its original UN sanctioned borders, dismantling all the illegal settlements, and allowing the establishment of a Palestinian state. There may be sticking points such the right of return of Palestinians displaced during wars and by Israeli ethnic cleansing. But the broad outlines of peace have always been and continue to be quite clear. Israel does not want such a peace: it instead wants the Palestinians to settle for a set of isolated Bantustans on the South Africa model.
Herewith some quotes from Israeli politicians definitely not on the lunatic fringe:
Michael Ben Yair, Israel's Attorney General in the Rabin and Peres governments of the 1990s: "In effect, we established an apartheid regime in the occupied territories following their capture".
Meron Benvenisti, former deputy mayor of Jerusalem: The building of the so-called security wall amounts to making Israel "a binational state based on apartheid" and that the wall means "the imprisonment of some 3 million Palestinians in bantustans".
And this from a May 2002 report by B'Tselem (Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories) entitled Land Grab: "Israel has created in the Occupied Territories a regime of separation based on discrimination, applying two separate systems of law in the same area" and that this "is reminiscent of distasteful regimes from the past, such as the apartheid regime in South Africa".
US taxpayer dollars (US$3billion annually) are essential to keeping this apartheid regime alive.
Check out the New York Review of Books on Carter's book.
I also recommend Norman G. Finkelstein's Image and Reality of the Israel-Palestine Conflict . The chapter "Oslo: The Apartheid Option" compares the actions of apartheid South Africa to Israeli policies in the West Bank and Gaza.
See also Ilan Pappe, the Israeli academic and historian: The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine .
5.0 out of 5 stars Honest presentation of the Israeli-Palestinian conflictReviewed in the United States on 16 November 2023 Verified Purchase This is probably the most honest, balanced, and fairest account of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict ever written by a member of the Western ruling class. Though President Carter struggled hard to present a political and moral equivalence between the Israeli occupation and suppressive violence of Palestinians and the Palestinian reactive violence against Israelis, he nevertheless did a great job of presenting a balanced narrative of the problem from both sides. Hopefully his courage will induce other leading members of the Western political and media elite to come forward with an equally honest and factual account of the problem, something many of them have been reluctant to do for fear of political recriminations. President Carter's book is a step in the quest for peace in the Middle East. There is a solution for every human problem. The quest for a lasting solution to the Middle East problem starts with acknowledging the factual causes of the problem. President Carter has done that in this book. It's up to the rest of us to build on that foundation.
2.0 out of 5 stars If I would have written this it would not have been publishedReviewed in the United States on 10 February 2007 Verified Purchase If I would have written the book and submitted this text for publication, or some other person less prominent than Former President Carter would have done so, I have serious doubts that it would have been published in its format - unless we call this an essay.
I admire Mr. Carter for his courage to speak out for the Palestinian people, and I understand his frustration with the current situation, which transpires from the text.
The plight of the Palestinian people is not well described in this book. It is sufficient for the reader who knows about it (that reader does not need to read this book, though). The average person living in the United States would need more detail to comprehend the dire situation of the Palestinians under occupation and their abuse. More detail would have helped here to get a better picture. One example would be the notion of distances: the dimensions of pieces of land we are talking about, distances between military checkpoints - they are much, much smaller than the average American and even European can think of.
Mr. Carter is focusing on the aggressive acts of the Israelis which are described very well. Mr. Carter makes no attempt to describe why the Israelis have taken the approach he is criticizing. He could have tried that, without necessarily having to approve the reasoning. Suicide bombing does not kill many people, but it has a strong psychological effect on the population and there is pressure on the leaders "to do something about it". Mr. Carter does not try to look into the psychology of the Israeli aggressor but has the courage of getting into the psychology of the oppressed Palestinians who would become violent up to committing suicide to harm others. Again, I admire Mr. Carter for his willingness to look into the latter, but I am very dissatisfied for not including the whole picture here.
Some omissions of facts make this book as incomplete and biased as listening to one side only when judging a divorce case. Some examples:
Mr. Arafat is described as a leader who relinquished terrorism and was willing to pursue peace. Unfortunately, that shift probably never happened. He has inflamed the spirits in 2000 on the Palestinian street, leading to the second Intifada. This is exactly what Mr. Sharon wanted to achieve when he visited the Temple Mount: to stir up a reaction, and to get elected prime minister. Mr. Arafat should have known that. We know the consequences of that: no peace talks, the oppression, the Wall.
Mr. Carter states that in 1996 there were two suicide bombings in Israel. There were more than that, and Mr. Shimon Peres, a pacifist, was not elected prime minister - mainly because of the security situation.
Mr. Carter did not tell us in his book that at some point in the 90's there was a cycle of violence followed by travel (including commute and work)restrictions for the Palestinians and whenever there was a goodwill gesture to remove some military checkpoints to ease life for the Palestinians, this was followed in short time by another suicide bombing in Israel. Actually the infamous and ugly wall was built out of frustration to stop the suicide bombings and it pretty much did so.
Mr. Carter oversimplifies the 2006 conflicts between Israel and Gaza or Lebanon by defining a cycle of kidnapping of a small number of soldiers that triggered an exaggerated reaction from the Israeli military. What we do not hear from Mr. Carter is that in the Gaza episode of 2006, the kidnapping was a highly sophisticated attack into Israel coming after weeks in which hundreds of rockets were fired from Gaza into Israel. The response of Israel was not to the kidnapping but to the combination of the events. The conflict with Lebanon was started by Hezbollah without any provocation as they fired rockets into a city first (civilians) and by creating this diversion and subsequent diversion of Israeli troops they managed to kidnap the soldiers on the border. In fact in both conflicts there was aggression of the Israeli population first, which was graciously overlooked by the author. I would kindly invite Mr. Carter to give us an example of a country that would tolerate this kind of agression.
Mr. Carter omits that the timing of the Hezbollah attack on Israel in 2006 was during the G-8 summit where there were planned discussions on the Iran nuclear program. Iran is the sponsor of Hezbollah. That attack was supposed to divert attention from Iran. In fact, it was the first time ever Hezbollah attacked when the Palestinian front was active. They never did so in the past (because there is so much media bandwith to cover the events). The Lebanese were very critical of their situation - being hostages to foreign interests, namely Iranian interest. This was covered by the American media and I find it impossible that Mr. Carter did not have knowledge of that.
The Hezbollah stated that they were trying to help their Palestinian brothers. Mr. Carter should have used better judgment not to include this lie in the book. In fact, as Mr. Carter noted in the book, with Hezbollah shifting the attention to Lebanon, the Israeli forces had the chance to operate in Gaza without much media coverage.
The conclusion part of the book does not summarize what was said before; it goes on with new facts - which are also debatable (just a small technical issue).
In conclusion, this book, written out of frustration, does not offer a lot of information for people who have read before on the subject or have witnessed the problem on-site. Since it is biased it can be considered merely another point of view. It is not the first book one should read on the subject of the Palestinian conflict, since additional information is needed to comprehend the complexity of the situation.
4.0 out of 5 stars The Dangers of Nothing Left to LoseReviewed in the United States on 28 August 2009 Verified Purchase Controversial title. The word 'apartheid' has been used by Israelis, but obviously not right-wingers. The main reason the book has caused such a stir is, of course, the stature of its author. Carter was a one-term president (getting just 46% of the American Jewish vote in 1980, shockingly low for a Democrat). His term was marked by the Islamic revolution in Iran (not his fault) and a very sluggish domestic economy (we vote our pocketbooks, and why not?). However, he brokered a bilateral peace agreement between Egypt and Israel and won the Nobel Peace Price. Many former presidents play the humanitarian role, but Carter has been particularly good at it. So, like him or not, he has stature. This book is his personal account of probably the world's most exceedingly complicated conflict. It is frankly subjective. And it has been viewed by many as more critical of Israel than the 'other side'. What I find very unfair here is the charge of anti-Semitism. In my view, to call someone anti-Semitic is the same thing as calling them a 'hater' or 'evil'. Carter has targeted criticisms of various Israeli administrations but surely he's not a hater or evil. And to misuse a term like that can dilute its effect when used aptly. Unfortunately, Palestinian leadership so-called has been largely corrupt and/or inept and/or violent. While Carter doesn't delve much into that directly, I think it's implicit in much of this book. Carter is also very daring to link the Israel/Palestine conflict with Muslim terrorism elsewhere. On that important point, he's right. Muslims span the globe, from North Africa to the Philippines, not to mention the western hemisphere. Regardless of their level of education, they are ALL aware of the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. Resolving that would not eradicate any and all Islamic terrorism from the world, of course. But it would be HUGELY important. To view this as a neatly contained conflict between two regional entities is absurd. The whole world has been watching, is watching now and will continue to monitor it. The status quo for Israelis is cushier than for the Palestinians, so why should Israelis question their policies? In the interests of medium- to long-term security and peace. The status quo is probably unsustainable, and for that reason, prudent changes would be in Israel's self-interest. BTW, I do care very much about Israel's security. So read this book evenhandedly and be fair. There's plenty of blame to go around.
5.0 out of 5 stars The subject matter is one of the most complex in ...Reviewed in the United States on 6 September 2014 Verified Purchase The subject matter is one of the most complex in our world society and thus we of North America should make ourselves familiar in a first hand way. I want to note that the news media people try to represent the problem but they are not seemingly flexible, or au faits of the saga. The book under review is however much more clear with respect of the past and present aspects of the dillema. It follows that President Carter can describe the actual state of affair at a unusual level of perception and it is the most revealing document I have perused since the 1950s. He rightfully describes the isreali USA backed authoritarian mode which is in effect in most ways has destroyed the ability to function of the Arab community, rockets and bombs notwitstanding. The book demonstrate the deep interrest of President Carter and his lady given his many visits they made, before, in OFFICE and after his tenure as President. And he has a very refined way of representing the real nature of Headline for your review the ways of life of the populations in most true and informative terms. Having read that book, one then has a non- CNN version and the President explains the facts of an unnaceptable situation of unfair occupancy and total supervision of the Arab population.This book will enlighten you beyond the past involvments of the Arafat/Clinton it will clarify your opinion as you get the real details. This book in addition to another related book , "The Generals Son' also from Amazon will bring you up to par with the Middle East Mishandlings before and after the UN Partition vote allowing 55% of the Arab land for isrealis a fact that was obviously ignored with no repercussions from UN. it should behoove us all, who stay current with the World, to read this book as it contains the facts as Jimmy Carter, the PRES, relates them in this high focus book, I now know more about the ruling and the ruled structures of the levant.
5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent and unbiased reviewReviewed in the United States on 5 May 2013 Verified Purchase President Jimmy Carter has long been known to be unbiased as well as an agent for peace. he did an excellent job in presenting what exactly is going on with the plight of the Palestinians. Having known virtually nothing about what is going on with Israel and the occupied land, this book was perfect in enlightening and educating me. As shocked as I was at the Palestinian predicament, I took comfort in the source, Jimmy Carter, knowing that I was getting an educated and compassionate perspective. If you want to learn about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, this is one of the best books you can get. I am now on my third and I highly recommend it.
Carter identifies "two interrelated obstacles to permanent peace in the Middle East": 1) Some Israelis believe they have the right to confiscate and colonize Palestinian land and try to justify the sustained subjugation and persecution of increasingly hopeless and aggravated Palestinians; and 2) Some Palestinians react by honoring suicide bombers as martyrs to be rewarded in heaven and consider the killing of Israelis as victories.
Some quotes from Carter. "The ultimate purpose of my book is to present facts about the Middle East that are largely unknown in America, to precipitate discussion and to help restart peace talks (now absent for six years) that can lead to permanent peace for Israel and its neighbors."
"Israel's continued control and colonization of Palestinian land have been the primary obstacles to a comprehensive peace agreement in the Middle East."
Even though with rave reviews and it being a New York Times Best Seller the Jewish lobby has attacked Carter for his use of the word "apartheid" in the subtitle. They have gone so far as saying that not only is Carter engaging in anti-Semitism but he is an anti-Semite himself and a bigot. This is what he gets for pushing for Peace. If you do not have compassion for the Palestinians, then it just might be you have not read up on it.
I'm into my third book and Carter's message is unquestionably laced throughout everything I've read so far.
4.0 out of 5 stars Carter reflects back on the Palestinian crisisReviewed in the United States on 24 January 2007 Verified Purchase If you can get past the title, you might just find yourself gaining valuable insights into the ongoing Palestinian crisis. Carter provides what is essentially a summation of his 30+ years involvement in the region, dating back to 1973 when he first visited Israel. While his initial visit was personal, he came to be one of the major figures in the peace process that first developed in the Camp David meetings in the second half of his presidential administration, when he brought Sadat and Begin together, forging a historic agreement between Egypt and Israel.
Carter contrasts the laissez-faire approach of the Labour Party to the Palestine problem in the 70s with that of the hardline positions the Likud Party has taken over the years. He notes his many talks with Arab leaders on the crisis, and his personal involvement with Yasser Arafat in helping to set up a framework for peace talks, which was finally reached in the famous Oslo summits of the early 90s. These "secret" meetings between the Labour Party and the Palestinian Liberation Organization were a watershed event, and set the stage for the peace talks that took place during the Clinton administration.
Carter infuses his narrative with a lot of personal insights and anecdotes, providing valuable character sketches of the various Arab and Israeli leaders he came in contact with over the years. He presents their arguments, which may be offensive to some readers but are necessary in understanding the crisis.
He notes the many abuses of the UN resolutions and subsequent peace agreements committed by both sides. But, there are many who will beg to differ over his grievances with Israel in recent years, as Carter cites the money that has been withheld, the illegal search and seizures, the confiscation of property and many other injustices that have been committed by Israel against Palestinians. He held out hope during the Rabin-Perez years that an agreement would be reached on the creation of a Palestinian state, which he felt was sabotaged by the return of the Likud Party to power.
The book is not a definitive account of the crisis. One needs to read more in order to fully appreciate the magnitude of the situation, and how it is central to any agreement in the Middle East which formally recognizes both Israel's and Palestine's right to exist in peace.
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, but....Reviewed in the United States on 21 June 2015 Verified Purchase President Carter boldly and honestly speaks to the masses in America whose opinions of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict are fashioned by ignorance. Anybody who knows the history of modern Israel and has no sympathy for the Palestinian cause shares the same imperialist mindset as Cecil Rhodes, Jan Smuts and Adolph Hitler. Just like the Boers and the Pilgrims, the Israeli Jews are European outcasts who knew the pain of oppression and discrimination, but had no problem taking over other people's land and oppressing and discriminating against them.
The only problem I had with this excellent book was with the pulled punches. Unlike President Carter, I am fully convinced that Israeli apartheid "is" motivated by a sense of ethnic superiority. How else would you explain the desire for a "Jewish" state and the clear mandate that Palestinian refugees must give up any hope of returning to their homeland?
Unlike President Carter, I am also unwilling to embrace the 1947 United decision as an unbiased solution. Remember, the decision was made at the height of global White supremacy where European nations still claimed possession of much of Africa and Asia, and apartheid was a daily reality for American citizens. This United Nations had no problem disenfranchising and displacing a people with a single vote.
Nonetheless, although the United Nations' decision was rooted in imperialistic notions of European supremacy (coupled with an overwhelming dose of guilt for the Holocaust), I believe that we must deal with present realities. Those "Jewish" immigrants who inhabit the region (remember, there were less than 60,000 Jews living in that geographical area before 1900), should be allowed to remain--but only under conditions negotiated with Palestinians who are viewed as equals at the table. Once the terms have been ironed out, "all" the people in the region should be given an opportunity to have their voices heard at the ballot box. This is the "only" solution for those who claim to support democracy. This is the roadmap to peace.
4.0 out of 5 stars Apartheidt jeopardizes prospects for peaceReviewed in the United States on 15 January 2007 Verified Purchase Review of- Palestine Peace Not Apartheid , by Jimmy Carter
The title of President Jimmy Carter's latest book, Palestine Peace Not Apartheid, has drawn fire from some critics for the use of the term apartheid, a word associated with the former policy of racial separation in South Africa. However, President Carter is not the first observer of the Israel/Palestine conflict to use the term. The striking similarity of Israeli treatment of Palestinians to the ugly South African policy has been widely remarked by many, including Israeli Jews, Jewish Americans, non-Jews in the US, Europe and the Third World.
What gives President Carter's opinion considerable authority has been his long history of indulgent patience with the hard liners of both parties, particularly with Israel's intransigence regarding settlements in the occupied territories. It is only when he gets to Chapter 16, "The Wall as a Prison", that Carter specifies the details of his charge of apartheid. The facts related there reveal the confinement and subjugation of a population that fully warrant the charge.
He perceptively explains how Israeli leaders view the political and social purposes of the wall. "Their presumption is that an encircling barrier will finally resolve the Palestinian problem. Utilizing their political and military dominance, they are imposing a system of partial withdrawal, encapsulation, and apartheid on the Muslim and Christian citizens of the occupied territories." The International Court of Justice in 2004 ruled that the wall, built entirely on Palestinian territory and three and a half times as long as Israel's recognized border, is illegal. There is little doubt that the Quartet's "Roadmap" is being scuttled by this policy.
President Carter presents proposals that he suggests as promising, such as the Geneva Initiative of 2003 and the Arab Peace Proposal of 2003. However, I believe Carter's fair-minded view overlooks the fact that long before the illegal Jewish West Bank settlement blocks appeared, Zionists demonstrated by deeds a determination to have all of Palestine with as few Arabs as possible. The forcible expulsion of over 700,000 Arabs in 1948-49, a deliberate act of ethnic cleansing, is well documented by Israeli and Arab historians. United Nations Resolution 194 of December 1948 calls for the unconditional return of Palestinian refugees, and the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights specifically proscribes exile and asserts that everyone has the right to leave and return to his own country. Until the violation of these principles is addressed, peace is unlikely.
5.0 out of 5 stars Well Worth the ReadReviewed in the United States on 8 April 2024 Verified Purchase I highly recommend reading this book. President Carter has provided a very honest analysis of the situation in Palestine and has testified that occupation is real in Palestine. I believe if more and more of us become aware of this then we can very soon see a change within our life time and make President Carter’s dream of seeing a Free Palestine become a reality in his lifetime. I am very appreciative of his honest analysis of the situation.
5.0 out of 5 stars great informative readReviewed in the United States on 20 May 2024 Verified Purchase As someone who wants to learn more about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict given what happened on October 2023, this book serves as a wonderful introduction to the conflict and the struggles of finding peace in the region, however, Carter reiterated that there is still hope for peace.
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book! Palestine Under Israeli Apartheid OccupationReviewed in the United States on 29 January 2024 Verified Purchase Diplomacy and the media have spread the myth that Palestine is almost a state and that Israel left in 2005, as though the only thing missing is recognition of its sovereignty as an independent state alongside Israel. However, the concept of a two state solution plan obscures the reality on the ground: Israel exercises de facto sovereignty over the Palestinian Territories, controlling all facets of Palestinian life and livelihood. This is a good book as a reflection point on what's still happening in 2023 and 2024.
5.0 out of 5 stars Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid is based on factsReviewed in the United States on 14 May 2007 Verified Purchase The book, "Peace not Apartheid by the author, President Jimmy Carter is an authentic, comprehensive and critically informative documentary evidence based on his personal visits to Israel and Palestine and experience in negotiating peace between Israel and Egypt as President in 1977 and also being deeply involved in Israel Palestine affairs during his presidency (1977 - 1981) and finally based on his post presidency period through the Carter Center. For better understanding of the developments in the Middle East, the author has listed a few of the important events that have led to the existing state of affairs in a historical chronology starting from 1900 B.C. to 2006. This book gives clear picture of Israel-Palestine problems and Israel-Arab problems exhibiting 9 informative maps of Israel at different times 1949 -1967, 1967 -1982 , 1982 -2006 , maps with Clinton proposal, and Sharon's Partition plan 2002 with Israeli areas within Palestinian land and scattered Israeli settlements all over Palestinian land. There is one map of segregation walls. This map shows segregation wall between Israel and Gaza Strip. This segregation wall built on Palestinian land completely isolates Gaza with no dependable access even to the other Palestinian land in west bank with no viable economic and political entity. Similarly, West Bank has also been segregated from Israel with segregation walls built within deep into the Palestinian land to encompass Israeli settlement blocks. Within Palestinian West bank area, a planned Israeli settlement control area has been shown. Number of permanent settlements of Olmart Plan has also been shown on Palestinian West Bank area in this map. In fact, Palestinians are completely surrounded by walls, fences and Israeli checkpoints and are therefore living as prisoners within the small portion of land left to them. Palestinians are barred from access to water living within their own small land. Palestinians' basic human rights are being trampled which is travesty of justice. The book rightly reads that driving purpose for the forced separation of the two peoples is unlike that in South Africa -not racism, but the acquisition of land. This is also another form of apartheid. The author is bold enough to spell out such strong words driven by his own conscience and so he advocates for peace shunning apartheid.
5.0 out of 5 stars THE SIMPLE UNMENTIONABLE TRUTHReviewed in the United States on 3 January 2007 Verified Purchase Former President Jimmy Carter has written a courageous eye-witness account of the plight of the Palestinians and Israel's illegal wall and occupation of Palestinian territory. As a participant in peace negotiations during his presidency and many times since being out of office Jimmy Carter's credientials on this issue are impeccable. Mr. Carter handles the issues fairly and discusses failures by the leadership on both sides to honor decades of negotiated agreements. A fair account of the history of Palestine since 1948 makes it unavoidable to recognize that a much greater share of blame falls on the Israeli government as an occupying power and the establishment of what can only be described as an apartheid system. These are the facts on the ground. The book is well written and Mr. Carter backs up his statements by including the UN resolutions and agreements he cites at the back of the book. Anyone who studies these issues and is familiar with the peace talks and UN resolutions calling for Israel to withdraw from the occupied territory of Palestine will recognize much described in this book.
This book is a must read for all Åmericans who want to understand exactly what American taxpayer dollars given in aid and loans to Israel is supporting and the impact this has on American relations across the entire middle east. Israel is always described in the American press as the only democracy in the middle east. What the press accounts neglect to mention is that this democracy is only for Jews. No other nation that applies an apartheid system of rules based on race is called a democracy by the American government.
The truth about the Israeli governments policies and actions toward the Palestinians and it's threats and invasion of it's neighbors is taboo in the American press and truth tellers are unmercifully smeared with the full weight of the American media.
Jimmy Carter is gutsy and honest and truly a man of peace for writing this book. As Americans we should thank him. Go out and buy this book if you are tired of propaganda and pro-Israel media spin and really want to know what our government is supporting with our money.
5.0 out of 5 stars Sensitive Issue, Tough SolutionsReviewed in the United States on 25 February 2008 Verified Purchase This is one of the most sensitive issues of our time, Israel and Palestine. Though many people love to condemn Jimmy Carter for writing this book, it is one of courage and sadly is the the truth. One only has to examine both sides of this conflict and the Zionist agenda. Not all Jews are Zionist but the government of Israel is. Calling out the Israeli Government for their control over the Palestinians is not Anti-Semitic, it is the moral thing to do. Jimmy being a good Christian man sees this and morally knows better. Israel and America is not a black and white issue because there are so many gray areas in between. Also, with the growing movment of Christian Zionism, and this cults undying support for the nation of Israel, has caused much bias and division in the Christian Church. After all, if your a Christian that opposses any of Israel's actions, you are a nonimal Christian. Christian Zionism is also politically involved with the liazon between America, AIPC and Israel. The focus has become one of Biblical Prophecy than Jesus Christ Himself. Sadly, I don't think Jesus would be proud of Christian support for heinous actions in Israel toward the Palestinians. Israel is not to be worshipped, only God Himself. Jesus was not invloved in politics and nor should Christians be. Point blank, the Palestinians are an oppressed people with terrorism used as an excuse to round them up like cattle. Sadly, to critique Israel as a nation, one is reduced to being Anti-Semitic. But wait!!! Arabs being descended from Abraham through Ishmael are a Semitic people as well. Israel became a nation in 1948, they will be held responsible as any other nation. I do not see anywhere in the Torah that people are to treat other people in this way, this they will be held accountable. I believe the Jewish government is, Godless. Jimmy Carter is a good man, and woe unto them that call good evil and evil good.
5.0 out of 5 stars A Must Read for a Better Understanding of the Israeli-Palestinian ConflictReviewed in the United States on 12 February 2024 Verified Purchase Former US President Jimmy Carter has a wealth of experience in Israeli-Palestinian relations that he shares with the readers of his book. Despite the false accusations of those offended by his observations and honest comments, I can’t think of anyone that has demonstrated a greater desire for peace and prosperity for the people of Israel and the Palestinians.
5.0 out of 5 stars Very goodReviewed in the United States on 8 December 2006 Verified Purchase I grew up like most Americans, completely ignorant of the truth of the Israeli / Palestinian issue. All I knew about it was what I read in Leon Uris novels like Exodus and the Haj. The Israelis were painted as innocent lambs dancing the Horah around a campfire trying to make a better life, while the Palestinians were painted as savages.
The only time I ever heard anything about this was when the Palestinians would commit acts of barbaric terror.
As I grew older, I travled to the Middle East and began to see for myself what was going on.
This book reveals much of what I have seen. The Palestinians are treated worse than animals, yet no one in the US ever hears about it.
If you try and ponder why the US media ignores the plight of the Palestinians, you're branded a conspiracy theory anti-semite nut-job. Its clear NO-ONE is allowed to question Israel.
Moreover, every few years yet another movie comes out about the Jewish Holocaust: Shindler's List, A Beautiful Life, Jacob the Liar, etc cementing the notion in everyone's mind that the Jews suffered terribly and are beyond reproach. Yet few in any films depicting Palestinian suffering are made, much less distributed.
The Israeli justification is that they have been attached to the land for 2000+ years by divine right, and therefore entitled to the land. I wonder what Americans would do if Mexican Indians started to swarm across the border, and physically remove American from their homes because the Indians stated their Aztec God bequeathed this land 2000 years ago. There'd be absolute chaos. That's what's going on in Israel. An entire people is being subjagated and no one in the US ever hears about it, until now.
Granted, the Palestinians absolutley don't help themselves by the idiot acts of terror. The only thing Americans know is Palestinians commited the terror acts in the Munich olympics and kill kids in discos. The Israelis play the Palestinians like fools.
Hopefully a careful reading of this book will show why the Palestinians act so irrationally. They are being driven crazy by the injustice. And like Bob Marley said: "No justice, no Peace." Read this book.
5.0 out of 5 stars Great read!Reviewed in the United States on 21 March 2024 Verified Purchase I am not usually one to read this kind of book, but decided to give it a go, I could not put it down and was so involved in it. Wonderful writing and I learned so much from this. Definitely recommend.
5.0 out of 5 stars God bless President CarterReviewed in the United States on 25 March 2024 Verified Purchase I'm not a liberal but this is a great book if you want to learn about the region conflict you can't get a better teacher than Jimmy. I learned so much from this book. Good read. 📚 📚 📚
5.0 out of 5 stars An honest and Factual PresentationReviewed in the United States on 9 February 2007 Verified Purchase I bought this book because I got tired of getting email from pro-Palestinians encouraging me to praise the book, and emails from pro-Zionists encouraging me to condemn it. I decided to read and do an honest review
The book struck me with how factual and realistic Jimmy Carters assessment of the Israeli/Arab conflict is. As someone who lived through the conflict and was deeply affected by it, I found Carter to have understood the state of Israel for what it really is, a masked apartheid state where flagrant human rights violations are an every day occurrence that is given a blind eye by the Israelis and the west. The point which he kept stressing, is the illegal Israeli settlements on Arab land, the often, overlooked issue that is the true obstacle for world peace. As long as Israel continues to confiscate Palestinian land and kill Palestinians indiscriminately, there will be no world peace.
Carter is no Shakespeare, he does not dazzle you with his poetic skills, so if you are looking for that, skip the book. However, if you want to understand the roots of the Middle East conflict, and want to hear the truth from someone who made a point of finding it and understanding it, then this book if a must read for you.
The reviews that attack Carters personality clearly have guilt written all over them. In the book, Carter did not come across as pro-Israeli nor Pro-Palestinian, he was simply "Pro-Peace". Apparently, this annoys some people. Perhaps they are a part of the problem and are annoyed that he had cut through their smoke screen and propaganda campaigns.
Feel free not to take my word for any of this and read the book yourself. If you can't afford to buy it, leave me a comment. Maybe I could help.
5.0 out of 5 stars Well done Jimmy!!!Reviewed in the United States on 20 December 2006 Verified Purchase Well done Jimmy!!!!
This is a remarkable work because finally a tough-minded and even-handed approach toward solving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has been extensively reviewed, if not vilified. Good, vitriol be damned, the issue is finally able to be discussed. The seminal work on the debate, "The Passionate Attachment", by George Ball and his son was greeted by a conspiracy of silence when it first appeared in 1993. Not so Carter's work, as an ex-President and Nobel laureate, he is too visible to ignore.
Also unlike Ball's work, this is readable. Part of this is due to Carter's style, one of a person who, as a commander, must communicate well. The other part is due to the book being part memoir, part blueprint for a just peace, but mostly an intensely personal narrative. Note carefully the number of times his wife, Rosalynn, is mentioned, i.e., Rosalynn and I made the trip....... Rosalynn and I made careful notes, etc. Note also that his sadness is not only directed toward Islam but also toward the Palestinian Christians who are locked in the same vise.
Much of the negative comment has come from Jewish-Americans. There is a warped attitude in this country that it is fair to criticize the government of China, that of France, even the Ottawa government but never Israel; that unless you are committed to carpet-bombing Palestinian playgrounds you are obviously an anti-Semite. Bubba just showed the World that that dog ain't gonna hunt no more.
I liken the plight of Jewish-Americans to that of Irish-Americans in the 1970's who were duped by the romanticism of the Tan War and supported the Provisional IRA in the early part of the Troubles. Irish-America wrestled with it's collective conscience and treated the Provos for what they were, yesterdays men caught up in an endless cycle of meaningless violence. It's time for Jewish-Americans to have a similar confrontation with their collective conscience over the Helotization of the Palestinians.
5.0 out of 5 stars An Honest Peace BrokerReviewed in the United States on 26 October 2007 Verified Purchase President Jimmy Carter proves in this book that he is an honest peace-loving statesman of a calibur in short supply nowadays. He dares to speak out about the truths for too long hidden from the American public. He also shares with the reader his personal experiences and insight about the intricacies of the Palestinian Cause. He sheds light on the gross injustices inflicted on the Palestinians by Israel and those who back the Israeli practices against the Palestinian people, and arrives at his unbiased conclusions.
One wonders why has Mr. Carter not been able to act on his findings when he was in power as president of the powerful USA. Has the USA policy of blindfoldedly adopting the Israeli position in the conflict and thrwing USA weight behind Israel served the intersts of our country? This, in my view, is the main question this book raises. It is a question that has far-reaching implications on American people's life. As such, we Americans ought to focus on policies that takes at heart and foremost the American (rather than Israeli) interests.
Mr. Carter is a glimmer of hope for justice and peace in the midst of a misguided and morally bankrupt foreign policy of the great country he once presided over. I strongly recommend this book for excellent reading by all.
Let's hope that Mr. Carter's voice is heard and his call heeded by those in the decision making positions on all sides.
Thank you President Carter for your honesty that will inevitably advance the cause for peace.
5.0 out of 5 stars Beginner's guide to the conflict.Reviewed in the United States on 7 February 2024 Verified Purchase I have recently bought several books on the Palestine-Israel conflict and this is the only one so far that I never put down. It's really an unbiased look at the conflict through Jimmy Carter's experience.
5.0 out of 5 stars On behalf of the opressed: Thank you, Sir.Reviewed in the United States on 5 March 2007 Verified Purchase Mr. Carter,
On behalf of the opressed children and widows and elder people of palestine. On behalf of the tortured fathers that are no long able to serve as the providers for food or security to thier families..
On behalf of all of those and others who can not be heard, I say thank you, thank you for communicating our voice to the people of America. The people whome we know are kind and fair and whome we know are going to act once they feel and know the truth.
I thank you for the courage to say an inconvenient truth.
I appeal to any american to open his/her heart and mind to protect an entire population from one of the most vicious attrocities in human history known to mankind.
The roots of the palestine nation and people on the land of palestine go back in history to more than nine thousands years, way before the word Israel even became a name, way before Abraham came to existence.
For the reader: Please go and educate youself about the 101 of the history of this country. The extreme Zionist movement and entities represented by Israel depend on confusing people and complicating matters to them so that they can bail out and let the attrocities in Palestine go on and on, till an entire nation is terminated in as much the same way that government of South Africa was trying to do.
Justice is simple and clear. When somebody tries to complicate it, this should be suspicious.
Thanks you for dedicating the time to read my review
5.0 out of 5 stars The reality created by the Israeli occupation is much more terrifying.Reviewed in the United States on 23 January 2007 Verified Purchase Not very long ago, I went to the West Bank to care for my ill father. I flew to Amman/Jordan; and the next morning I left Amman at 6:30 am and arrived to my destination in the West Bank at 7:15 PM. This trip usually takes a little more than an hour if it wasn't for the extremely difficult conditions the Israeli occupation has created.
When I arrived to the border crossing, I cleared the Jordanian side of the border crossing in about 30 minutes, after that, I took the buss that is used to shuttle the Palestinians between the Jordanian and Israeli ends of the border crossing. The buss waited for 4 hour on the bridge(over the Jordan River)until the Israelis allow them to cross, the buss I rode was full with people, families with their children who started getting wrestles and cried as time went by.
As I was waiting inside this bus, I was thinking what if a woman or a child wanted to use the bathroom, where would they go! I looked around and there was no bathroom insight. After crossing the Jordan-Israel border, we were driven in another buss to Jericho where we started yet another tedious trip to our destinations in the West Bank.
In Jericho we took a taxi which drove us for hours on dirt roads to avoid the endless wait on the Israeli checkpoints. On one check point we waited and waited and waited and later the driver was told by the Israeli soldiers manning the checkpoint to turn back, it was getting dark by then and the driver managed to find a dirt and muddy road between the olive orchards.
Although I applaud Mr. Carter for his courage and honesty, I wish that he has said more about the injustices imposed on the Palestinians by the Israeli occupation.
5.0 out of 5 stars A must read (coming from a Repulican & Catholic)Reviewed in the United States on 16 December 2006 Verified Purchase This is a must read for everyone. I am a registered Republican, but I like to state that I have my eyes open to the world. I am Catholic, but first and foremost I am a Christian. It's funny how people are slamming this book, some before they even have read it, but it's based on facts. I have been aware of this situation for some time in the Holy Land, but this book is making more people aware of what is going on. It doesn't matter if you are a conservative Republic, Democrat or whatever. If you are a good, caring person you will see what is happening in the world and want to put a stop to it. Pelosi slammed this book, again without reading it, because she didn't want to bite the hand that feeds both political parties; AIPAC, American Isreali Public Affairs Committee. They are the most powerful political lobby group in Washington.
People that think this book is not fact and not what is really happening over there need to travel to the Holy Land and see first hand. That is what I plan on doing. If we change our policy, in that area alone, 90% of the problems we are facing would stop. People say we will never have peace over there. Do they mean the peace we have in the United States...because the last time I watched the national and local news I saw a lot of murders, beatings, rapes, etc. So let us define "peace".
Read the book and then judge. If you get a chance to go to the Holy Land, I say do it. I am planning on going with our church group.
5.0 out of 5 stars Not many good guys in the Middle EastReviewed in the United States on 16 March 2016 Verified Purchase Is there anyone in the U.S. more experienced and qualified to write about the Middle East? Carter is the only man alive who has really contributed to the Middle East peace process. I remember the excoriation that he received from Israeli authorities when the book was released. So I had to read the book and make up my own mind.
The first part of the book is his lifelong love of the Holy Lands. He speaks in the most glowing terms about most everything Israeli. However, he also lays criticism at the Israelis which has been confirmed from multiple independent sources. Israel is not always in the right. That can be a provocative conclusion which can elicit emotional responses.
If anyone wants to render an opinion on the Middle East, they should READ THIS BOOK. You may agree or disagree, but it is essential that one speaks with a reference of knowledge.
It takes a FORMER president to write this book. An aspiring or current president would find too much noise and lack of knowledge being fomented with our 24 hour news.
Read this book and make up your own mind. If you are reading this review, you are probably in that minority of the intellectually curious.
5.0 out of 5 stars Wisdom of Carter - remember camp davidReviewed in the United States on 22 December 2006 Verified Purchase Careter -- (the architect of the longest lasting peace treaty between Israel and an Arab neighbour Egypt secured with the famous 1978 Camp David accords) -- is uniquely positioned to distil the complex situation into right and wrong and what we do next to bring peace to this troubled region.
The Carter-haters (hate is not a family value) are pre-disposed to reviewing this book without reading it. One must assume several of their ranks to be functionally illiterate. Those of us with open minds and a heart, those of us that have seen war and death. and who have live in the middle east and understand the magnitude of human suffering can only marvel at the perspicacity of this octogenarian. Has there been a president in the past sixty years with such a moral compass?
In this book, despite the Carter-hater's nits and peccadillos, Jimmy reveals the underlying causes of the conflict in the middle east. Begining with maps and a historical chronology, Carter brilliantly shows the situation through the lens of palestine - instead of that of american news and Israel.
Let's give him credit for trying to understand the underdogs - the palestinians - and question the conventional 'wisdom' that uses a simplistic mask of 'terrorism' to explain the plight of the previous residents of the holy land - before their rights and land holdings were systematically usurped.
For those who pray for peace in the world, it is the brave souls like Carter that give us hope again.
Jimmy - you do so much more than build homes. You will be remembered as a powerful and enlightened mind on a par with the nation's founders.
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent historical reviewReviewed in the United States on 8 January 2024 Verified Purchase This book is VERY important for all Americans to read and understand. Unfortunately it could not be more timely. We must understand so that there can be change. Enough!!!!
5.0 out of 5 stars President Carter Revives Our Faith in Democracy and Human MoralityReviewed in the United States on 15 January 2007 Verified Purchase In the mist of so much misconceptions imposed by our media on the American public about the Palastine-Israel conflict, this book by president Jimmy Carter is a breath of fresh air. Finally, after a very very long time, we hear the brave voice of justice coming from a prominant American that speaks with moral authority and thus reminds us of the founders of this great nation, the United States of America, who so amirablly cherished the cause of freedom, justice and libery for all human kind. The book while being very fair about the secutity concerns of Israel, for the first time gives a balanced view of the immense injustices done to the defenseless people of Palestine by Israel ever since the inception of this Zionist state. The voice of president Carter is loud and clear because it is tuned to the powerful message of loving kindness of Christ. All mankind in general, and all muslims in the world in particular, owe a debt of gratitude to president Jimmy Carter for his admirable and brave commitment to the cause of peace and justice in the world. This book is a proof that the Nobel Peace Prize won by president Jimmy Cater was well earned. I recommend this book, Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid, to all Americans to remind us that without ethical and moral authority we cannot hold the flag of democracy high and thus do not deserve to be the leader of the free world.
5.0 out of 5 stars A largely credible account from a key peacemakerReviewed in the United States on 11 February 2007 Verified Purchase President Carter tells it like it is, for the most part.
His account, by and large, matched my previous perception. He describes Israeli treatment of Palestinians, including Christians, to be even worse than I thought. The primary problem is Israel's continued theft of Palestinian land and ruthless subjugation of the Palestinian people. The Israeli/Palestinian conflict is indeed the "principal fault line in world conflict".
Where I question President Carter is on his indication that the Israeli leaders, not the Israeli citizens on the whole, are the primary problem. Israel claims to be a democracy, so in large measure, the Israeli population must approve of the actions of its government. Also, the quick negative response to Carter's book from Jewish Americans, complete with accusations that Carter is Anti-Semitic, indicates that they too are aligned with the Israeli leaders.
What I fear most is that the conflict will end with at a terrible cost to everyone.
The book is an easy and relatively quick read. It is presented in a manner that makes it a good reference. There are nine maps, a historical chronology, a concise summary at the end, seven appendices describing the various peace accords, and a good index.
Here is the page breakdown: tables of contents - 3, maps - 9, main text - 211, appendices - 31, acknowledgements - 2,and index - 14.
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent for learning.Reviewed in the United States on 7 January 2024 Verified Purchase Very educational, with a thorough history of the region and clear outlines of what is needed for peace. It enlightened my thinking.
5.0 out of 5 stars Read this bookReviewed in the United States on 7 March 2007 Verified Purchase From the personal notes of this great humanitarian and Nobel Peace Prize winner comes a troubling and detailed account of horrific acts subjugated upon the Palestinian people by the occupying Israelis. President Carter highlights a system of apartheid that has stripped the Palestine people of basic civil rights. From his many trips to the region, Carter collaborates his view point from direct first hand interviews with high ranking officials on both sides of the wall to the average Jew, Muslim and Christian in the region.
The former president goes on to account the blunders of present and pass administrations and a system of condoning Palestinian oppression whether it be through miss-guided policies, or failures to condemn the Israeli government for systemic human right abuses.
I rate the book 5 stars for two reasons. First, Carter is a credible and reliable source; his humanitarian accolades speak volumes of his character and his intention. Second, the average American (and I am American) receives the constant, biases media barrage of half truths. You cannot form an informed opinion without an honest review of both sides. We are far too quick to condemn the suicide bomber; yet far too slow to review the framework for such motivation. Are we as a nation so ultimately sure of the roles of villain and victim? - hmmmmm.
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent bookReviewed in the United States on 8 March 2007 Verified Purchase Finally the other side! Finally someone with credibility has the character to tell the whole story; and this time it's by someone the Israelis and the Christian Zionists can't destroy. I highly, highly recommend this book if you have any curiosity about the Nation of Israel and conflict in the Middle East. Americans have long feared criticism of Israel or even questioning of Israel; Israelis, right-wing Christians, and Christian Zionists are always quick to strike back. As a result, Israel is off limits to criticism; it can do no wrong in the eyes of America, and Americans tempt fate to question its actions. In fact, I suspect many will refuse to even read this book due to some fear of quilt or ridicule for even questioning Israel. But Americans must be willing to question both sides. Surely ex-President Jimmy Carter, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize for work in the Middle East, has some credibility both as a Christian and a statesman. As one would expect when there is no scrutiny or criticism, the nation of Israel has become belligerent and spoiled, spoiled by the never ending money and suport provided by America. What a shame! Despite constantly reminding others of their sufferings in the Holocaust, the nation of Israel seems to have forgotten about human rights.
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