Year Zero of the Arab-Israeli Conflict 1929

Year Zero of the Arab-Israeli Conflict 1929 examines the pivotal events that occurred in Palestine during 1929, focusing on the violent confrontations between Arabs and Jews. Cohen draws on extensive primary sources, including court testimonies, newspaper accounts, and personal documents in Arabic, Hebrew, and English. The book reconstructs the sequence of incidents that escalated into widespread violence across Palestine, from Jerusalem to Hebron to Safed. Through detailed accounts of individual participants and communities, Cohen presents multiple perspectives on how the conflict developed and impacted both Arab and Jewish populations. Cohen analyzes the political, social, and religious factors that contributed to the outbreak of violence, including disputes over holy sites and growing nationalist movements. The narrative tracks how local incidents connected to broader regional dynamics and international involvement in Palestine during this period. The work offers insights into how 1929 became a defining moment that shaped future Arab-Israeli relations and established patterns of conflict that would persist for decades. Through its examination of this critical year, the book reveals deeper truths about communal identity, collective memory, and the complex roots of ongoing tensions in the region.

Readers note the book provides balanced coverage of both Arab and Jewish perspectives on the 1929 events, with extensive use of primary sources and first-hand accounts. Multiple reviewers highlight Cohen's analysis of how different communities developed opposing historical narratives. Liked: - Detailed research and archival work - Translation quality from Hebrew to English - Integration of both Palestinian and Jewish sources - Clear explanation of complex religious/political tensions Disliked: - Dense academic writing style - Some passages require background knowledge of the region - Limited coverage of events outside Jerusalem/Hebron - High price point for relatively short book Ratings: Goodreads: 4.0/5 (21 ratings) Amazon: 4.2/5 (14 ratings) One academic reviewer on H-Net praised the "meticulous documentation" but noted the book "may be too specialized for general readers." Multiple Amazon reviewers mentioned the book helped them understand how 1929 continues to influence current conflicts.

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🔹 The book challenges traditional narratives by examining the 1929 Palestine riots from both Arab and Jewish perspectives, using sources in Hebrew, Arabic, and English. 🔹 Author Hillel Cohen is a professor at Hebrew University of Jerusalem who gained rare access to previously classified documents in multiple archives to write this account. 🔹 The 1929 events marked the first time the Western Wall became a major flashpoint in the Arab-Jewish conflict, transforming a religious site into a nationalist symbol. 🔹 Cohen reveals how the British Mandate authorities' investigation of the riots included over 2,000 pages of testimonies that had been largely overlooked by previous historians. 🔹 The book explains how the violence of 1929 fundamentally changed relationships between Jews and Arabs who had previously lived as neighbors in mixed communities, creating lasting demographic separations in Palestine.