TAMIL
Unending conflict
SE. GANESALINGAN
MUDIVINTRI THODARUM UTTHAM: Ki. Ilakkuvan; Alaigal Veliyeetagam, 25, South Sivan Koil Street, Kodambakkam, Chennai-600024. Rs. 100.
THE TITLE of the book indicates the continuing war between Israel and Palestine people over five decades without any end, a tragedy for the Palestine people.
The creation of a Zionist state in Palestinian land with the support of the imperialist powers is the most watched event in the history of the world. Although the media report this conflict very often, people are unable to fully grasp the agony of the Palestine struggle.
The author of this book must be admired for bringing all aspects of the dilemma in about 250 pages in 22 chapters.
He has traced the history of the Palestine people from the fall of the Ottoman Empire to a British colony, forcible occupation of the Zionist by the superpowers in the Palestinian soil, the four wars against them and becoming refugees in their own land.
The author has given the reasons for the weakness of the Arabs in one chapter namely their village economy for over 1000 years, rule by foreign powers and illiteracy. The cover of the book has an effective portrait of Yasser Arafat, leader of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) who promptly conveyed their oppression to the world and attained U.N observer status.
It is unfortunate that Arafat passed away in November 2004. Subsequently Mohamed Abbas was elected leader in January 2005. I
t is an irony when Hamas was elected to power by vote next year, the U.S. and western countries with Israel were not prepared to recognise or accept the verdict of a democratic election which they always wanted.
In the 19th century there were only 12,000 Jews in Palestine, and they have now risen to about five million Israelis, and the Palestine people have become minorities in their own land. In an appendix the author has listed 54 charges levelled against Israelis by the Palestine people.
As the Palestine people and the Arab countries are unwilling to accept Israel as a sovereign state, the title of the book will stand — never ending war to continue.
This book gives information on the current social problems, politics and economy of the Arabs and Palestine people and the imperialist countries’ involvement in Middle East for oil and blood. The author must be commended for writing such a book in a lucid style.
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