What to read to understand the war between Israel and Hamas

What books are necessary to understand the Israeli-Palestinian conflict? The media and television coverage of the current genocide in Gaza in Italy and in the rest of the West has often revealed its shortcomings, not providing a clear picture of the complexity of such a layered conflict that has persisted for over 100 years like the one between Israel and Palestine.
Often when reporting on the current conflict – war would not be the correct term given that no two armies are confronting each other – journalists and television hosts have limited themselves to the attack of 7 October, not taking into consideration 100 years of history.
For this reason it is essential to inform yourself also – and above all – through books that explain the historical reasons for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and also understand the role of Hamas.
For those who are wondering where to start to read about the current genocide, this brief guide to reading the best books that can explain the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the role of Hamas may be useful.
read also Hamas-Israel war, what is the position of Italian politics What to read to understand the war between Israel and Hamas There are numerous essays that document and analyze the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, among the most authoritative authors we find Edward Said and Ilan Pappé but not Alone.
Starting from the essential texts to the most recent ones after the Hamas attack on 7 October, let's discover which books are fundamental to understanding the current war between Israel and Hamas.
1) The Palestinian question – Said In The Palestinian question (1979) the American writer of Palestinian origin addresses Palestinian national history, testifying to a clash between European ideology and the Arab inability to convince the West of the rightness of the anti-colonialist cause.
Although the Palestinians have been dispersed, Said notes the Palestinian resilience and surprising ability to resist creating their specific national identity.
Starting from historical reality, Said crudely tests the groundlessness of the interpretative cages, criticized in his previous work Orientalism.
The Palestinian question – Edward W.
Said €18.70 €22.00 Buy now 2) History of modern Palestine.
One land, two peoples – Pappé In Modern History of Palestine (2004) Ilan Pappé traverses the history of this land which has attracted international powers since the nineteenth century, from the Ottomans to the English Empire, to the European Zionists, to the post-war superpowers.
Since 1948 it has become the land of two peoples, who have sometimes been able to collaborate, but who more often have suffered the consequences of the aggressive policies of the military and those in power.
In the book the historian combines the narrative of the oppressors and the oppressed.
A book based on documents in Hebrew, Arabic and European languages, which was able to raise an international debate.
History of modern Palestine – Pappé €23.80 €28.00 Buy now 3) The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine – Pappé Ilan Pappé recounts in his essay The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine (2006) the history of the conflict starting from 1948.
Pappé yes compare with the Israeli vulgate which wants the Arab countries, which went to war against Israel, to convince the Palestinians to abandon the territories, despite the appeals of the Jewish leaders to remain.
A vulgate that makes Israel not responsible for the Nakba.
Ilan Pappé, after having studied the story for decades, leads a radical battle against the political and academic establishment of Israel, providing a clear vision of what is happening, revealing that already in the 1930s the future State of Israel had created a systematic plan of ethnic cleansing of Palestine.
According to Pappé, the peace process can only start after the Israelis and world public opinion have admitted this "original sin".
The ethnic cleansing of Palestine – Ilan Pappé €16.15 €19.00 Buy now read also Gaza Strip, where it is located, who lives there and why there is war 4) Last stop Gaza – Chomsky and Pappé The Israeli historian Ilan Pappé and the father of linguistics Noam Chomsky, two attentive critics of Israeli policy in Palestine, have joined forces to offer food for thought and new knowledge to the more expert reader with the essay Last Stop in Gaza (2010).
After the critical reconstruction of the history of the conflict, from the Nakba of 1948, Pappé reinterprets the history of the conflict by providing a careful interpretation: the attempt at ethnic cleansing.
The essay discusses the role that the United States has always played in endorsing the illegal Israeli policy of colonization of the occupied territories and presents various peace scenarios: the two-state solution is not enough and we look at the proposal of a single binational state.
Last stop Gaza: where Israel's war against the Palestinians takes us – Chomsky & Pappé €16.05 €16.90 Buy now 5) The largest prison in the world – Pappé Among the recent books by the Israeli historian Ilan Pappé to read the Israeli-Palestinian conflict we find The largest prison in the world (2022).
After his investigation into the ethnic cleansing of Palestine, Pappé turns his attention to the occupation of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.
The new work presents the most complete analysis ever written on the genesis of the Occupied Territories and on daily life inside the "largest prison in the world", analyzing the strategies of Israeli generals and politicians.
Through NGO documents and eyewitnesses, Pappé denounces the brutalizing effects of the occupation, the systematic abuse of human rights, providing an incisive portrait of everyday life in the Occupied Territories and an appeal to the world not to turn a blind eye to the crimes against the humanity to which the indigenous Palestinian population is subjected.
The largest prison in the world – Ilan Pappé €17.00 €20.00 Buy now 6)Hamas.
From resistance to the regime – Caridi After her essay on Hamas in 2009, Paola Caridi returns with a new edition: Hamas.
From resistance to the regime.
An essay that temporally covers the period from the foundation of Hamas to the attacks of 7 October 2023.
Caridi answers the question of what lies behind the Hamas mystery.
In over 40 years of existence, Hamas has gone through terrorism and suicide bombings, defied Yasser Arafat and survived the physical elimination of most of its leaders.
After the 2006 elections, there is a tendency to identify Hamas with Gaza, but as it has gained consensus within a community considered more secular.
Hamas – Caridi €19.60 Buy now 7) Decolonizing Palestine – Sen We come to one of the most recent books to read the conflict between Israel and Hamas: Decolonizing Palestine: Hamas between anticolonialism and postcolonialism (2023) by Somdeep Sen.
The writer rejects the idea that liberation from colonization occurs in a single moment of history with the expulsion of the colonizer: it is a more complex process, the result of colonial and postcolonial practices.
After Hamas' unexpected 2006 election victory, the Palestinian organization continued to exist as an armed resistance against the Israeli government and as a governing body.
Explaining the how and why is the real challenge of the author who makes use of the material collected in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, Israel and Egypt, providing an original analysis that sheds new interpretative light on the movements for emancipation from colonialism.
Decolonizing Palestine – Somdeep Sen €21.56 Buy now read also What is the difference between Isis and Hamas? Novels and books of poetry to understand the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians And if historical essays and documentary analyzes can provide a clear picture of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, novels, reports and books of poetry have the power to convey emotions and the pain felt in living in the "largest prison in the world" quoting Pappé.
Let's see which are the most famous books or writers.
8)Every morning in Jenin – Abulhawa A poignant novel that can do for the Palestinians, the stateless people, what the Kite Runner did for Afghanistan.
Susan Abulhawa, born to a Palestinian family fleeing after the Six Day War, tells the story of four generations of Palestinians forced to leave their land after the Nakba and the birth of the state of Israel and to live the sad condition of being "without homeland".
A novel that tells the story of Palestine, interweaving it with the events of a family that becomes the symbol of Palestinian families.
From exile to war, to life in refugee camps.
Abulhawa does not look for the guilty among the Israelis, but tells the story of many victims capable of surviving only for love, love.
Every morning in Jenin – Abulhawa €11.90 €14.00 Buy now 9) Return to Haifa and Umm Saad – two stories by Kanafani Ghassan Kanafani's masterpiece, Return to Haifa is proposed in this book together with a little-known short novel from 'author.
Return to Haifa tells of two diasporas: the Palestinian and the Jewish one, united by a single destiny.
Said returns with his wife to see the old house in Haifa now inhabited by a family of Polish Jews who escaped Auschwitz.
The writer stands out for his ability to tell a double tragedy.
In Umm Saad, Kanafani tells of Saad's mother, who becomes a mythical figure and symbol of the Palestinian question.
Return to Haifa-Umm Saad – Kanafani €13.00 Buy now 10) The wisdom of the condemned to death – Darwish Mahmud Darwish (1941-2008) is the most important poet of contemporary Arab literature, a Palestinian poet who recounted the resistance of his people.
Universal singer of love and freedom, lover of Aeschylus and Dante, Darwish is the Palestinian poet who not only talks about Palestine, but talks about politics, the world and love.
Each book by Darwish is well recommended, taking as reference the recent collection The wisdom of the condemned man from 2022, we encounter poems divided into three thematic nuclei: the scholar who expresses his love for the mother earth and for the imaginary beloved ; the fragmented self and the singer of the homeland.
Texts from every phase of his poetic journey and experience were included in the collection.
The wisdom of the man condemned to death – Darwish €10.20 €12.00 Buy now read also Who is right between Israel and Palestine: and why this question will not resolve the conflict Books on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict for free Knowledge in the face of the current conflict and knowledge should be accessible to anyone, breaking down the possible economic barriers that separate a person from an accurate historical analysis in order to understand the conflict between Israel and Palestine.
11) Ten myths about Israel – Pappé For this reason, the Tamu Edizioni publishing house has decided to make the e-book of the book 10 myths about Israel (2022) by Ilan Pappé available at no cost.
Pappé's book deconstructs ten historical narratives that attempted to legitimize the founding of Israel in Palestine and the maintenance of occupation on the Palestinian territories.
Ten pillars that are rooted in European nationalism, imperialism and paradoxically in anti-Semitism, addressing important issues such as the use of racial discourse to fuel the colonial regime, the advance of the far right and Islamophobia.
The Israeli scholar refutes these ten myths starting from the first colonies of the 19th century, up to the present day.
To get the free book, simply go to the Tamu Edizioni website and select the e-book version to receive the free PDF.
For lovers of books in paper version, however, you will have to arrange for a copy.
10 myths about Israel – Pappé €16.00 Buy now