ISBN: 978-0-374-61818-6

Jørgen Jensehaugen

PRIO

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One of the most hotly debated topics about the Gaza war is whether Israel is guilty of committing a genocide. When the prominent Holocaust researcher Omer Bartov – who is also an Israeli – argues that it is, we should do well to listen. Already in November 2023 Bartov warned that Israel’s attacks on Gaza could become a genocide. This is no longer a warning. He now affirms that this is exactly what it has become. Since the Genocide Convention requires proof of intent, Bartov spends time going though statements from Israeli political and military leaders concerning the destruction of Gaza and the dehumanization of Gazans, before delving into the actions that constitute the genocide. This is not his only serious accusation against Israel in this hard-hitting, no punches pulled work. Bartov is clear that Israel has devolved into a ‘relentless, remorseless, and increasingly racist’ state (p. 4), and that apartheid is an apt term to describe its rule over Palestinian lives. However, not everything is doom and gloom in Bartov’s exposé of what Israel has become. Unlike what many similar books would insist on, Bartov claims that there are long-term remedies. He states that Israel must develop a constitution and a Bill of Rights that can secure that liberal democratic values rather that ethno-nationalism stand as the core values of the state. This sounds utopian, and as a short-term project Bartov admits that it is, but as a long-term investment this is the only way to pull Israel away from ‘singing and praying and dancing into the abyss’ (p. 183). There are deep and uncomfortable truths in this book that deserve to be taken seriously.