Description: A memoir that combines political and economic commentary with personal and national history.
Mohammad Tarbush was born in British Mandate Palestine. As an infant, he and his family were forced to evacuate their village together with its entire population, after the Zionist victory that led to the establishment of the State of Israel. Then as landless refugees in the West Bank, the family sank into poverty. When, as a teenager, Tarbush left home one day under the pretext of visiting relatives in Jordan, he in fact set off on a year-long hitchhiking journey to Europe, where he would eventually become a highly successful international banker and a key behind-the-scenes promoter of the Palestinian cause. In My Palestine, Mohammad Tarbush combines a poignant personal memoir with incisive political and economic commentary on the tumultuous events that shaped the history of Israel, Palestine, and the modern Middle East.Brief description: Nada Tarbush represents Palestine as a diplomat at the United Nations in Geneva. She holds a BA in Philosophy, Politics and Economics from the University of Oxford, and Master's degrees from Columbia University, Sciences Po Paris, and the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights.
Review Quotes: "If my father's story has taught me one lesson, it would be do not despair. He lived by and embodied that motto. Nothing was unattainable, no situation desperate enough to throw up hands and give up. There was always a solution, always ease to be found after hardship. Despite the tragic story of his family and his people, he maintained a relentless and stubborn hope. It is this attitude that led him to believe, with unwavering conviction, that the Israeli occupation of Palestinian land will come to an end, that the Palestinian refugees will realise their legitimate right of return and that Israelis and Palestinians will live together in peace and prosperity as equals in a single state.
Given the events of and since 7 October 2023 in Israel-Palestine, this book is more relevant than ever, and perhaps it is down to fate's wisdom that it is being published only now. These tragic developments cannot be isolated from their historical and political context; they are the culmination of more than seven decades of history, which are duly analysed in this memoir. They show that the status quo is untenable and that it is high time, for the sake of peace for Palestinians and Israelis alike, for action to be taken - not only to end the current tragedy but also to finally address and resolve the root causes of recurrent crises and suffering. Namely, seventy-six years of Palestinian dispossession and subjugation, fifty-seven years of military occupation of Palestinian land, seventeen years of illegal blockading of Gaza and chronic impunity for violations of international law. And change is possible. As the International Court of Justice prepares its ruling in South Africa v. Israel, in which Israel stands accused of committing the crime of genocide against the Palestinian population in Gaza, and an advisory opinion on the legal status of Israel's occupation of Palestinian land and decades-long denial of the Palestinian people's right to self-determination, the next few months and years will be instrumental in shaping the future of Palestine and Israel. These days have also seen an unprecedented rise in awareness worldwide of the Palestinian cause, marking a generational shift. Despite decades of frustration and defeat, a fast-growing movement of people advocating for the respect of universal principles of international law, accountability, human rights and justice for Palestinians gives cause for hope that the future will be more grounded in these principles, more just and more peaceful. With eternal gratitude to my unconditionally loving old man, as he called himself, who imbued me with a passion for justice and for the Palestinian cause, I send this book into the world in the hope that my father's story will inspire readers just as it has inspired me, and that brighter days will shine upon his Palestine."-- "from the Foreword by Nada Tarbush"