Gaza has become synonymous with conflict and dispute. Though only slightly larger than Omaha, Nebraska at 140 square miles, the small territory of Gaza has been a hot spot for bitter disputes between sparring powers for millennia, from the Ancient Egyptians up until the British Empire and even today. Wedged between the Negev and Sinai deserts on one side and the Mediterranean Sea on the other, Gaza was contested by the Pharaohs, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Byzantines, Arabs, Fatimids, Mamluks, Crusaders, and Ottomans. Then in 1948, 200,000 people sought refuge in Gaza-a marginal area neither Israel nor Egypt wanted. It is here that Palestinian nationalism grew and sprouted into a dream of statehood, a journey much filled with strife. Though small in size, Gaza's history is nothing short of monumental. Jean-Pierre Filiu's Gaza is the first complete history of the territory in any language. Beginning with the Hyksos in 18th century BC, Filiu takes readers through modern times and the ongoing disputes of the region, ending with what may be in store for the future.

Gaza: A History (Comparative Politics and International Studies)

History

Filiu, Jean-Pierre

Middle East

Oxford University Press

In his disturbing and timely book Jean-Pierre Filiu lays bare the strategies and tactics employed by the Middle Eastern autocracies, above all those of Syria, Egypt, Yemen and Algeria, that set out to crush the democratic uprisings of the 'Arab Revolution.' In pursuit of these goals they turned to the intelligence agencies and internal security arms of the 'deep state,' the armed forces, and to street gangs such as the Shabiha to enforce their will. Alongside physical intimidation, imprisonment and murder, Arab counter-revolutionaries discredited and split their opponents by boosting Salafi-Jihadi groups such as Islamic State. They also released from prison hardline Islamists and secretly armed and funded them. The full potential of the Arab counter-revolution surprised most observers, who thought they had seen it all from the Arab despots: their perversity, their brutality, their voracity. But the wider world underestimated their ferocious readiness literally to burn down their countries in order to cling to absolute power. Bashar al-Assad clambered to the top of this murderous class of tyrants, driving nearly half of the Syrian population in to exile and executing tens of thousands of his opponents. He has set a grisly precedent, one that other Arab autocrats are sure to follow in their pursuit of absolute power.

From Deep State to Islamic State: The Arab Counter-Revolution and its Jihadi Legacy (CERI Series in Comparative Politics and International Studies)

Politics & Social Sciences

Social Sciences

Gaza has become synonymous with conflict and dispute. Though only slightly larger than Omaha, Nebraska, at 140 square miles, the small territory of Gaza has been a hot spot for bitter disputes between sparring powers for millennia, from the Ancient Egyptians up until the British Empire and even today.Wedged between the Negev and Sinai deserts on one side and the Mediterranean Sea on the other, Gaza was contested by the Pharaohs, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Byzantines, Arabs, Fatimids, Mamluks, Crusaders, and Ottomans. Then in 1948, 200,000 people sought refuge in Gaza - a marginal area neither Israel nor Egypt wanted. It is here that Palestinian nationalism grew and sprouted into a dream of statehood, a journey much filled with strife.Though small in size, Gaza's history is nothing short of monumental. Jean-Pierre Filiu's Gaza is the first complete history of the territory in any language. Beginning with the Hyksos in 18th century BC, Filiu takes readers through modern times and the ongoing disputes of the region, ending with what may be in store for the future.

Gaza: A History

When Mohammad Bouazizi sets himself on fire on December 17, 2010, he started a series of extraordinary events that spread across the Middle East with stunning rapidity. In less than a month, President Ben Ali fled Tunisia, ending a twenty-three year regime. Shortly thereafter, on 11 February 2011, President Mubarak of Egypt stepped down after nearly thirty years in power. In The Arab Revolution, Jean-Pierre Filiu offers a concise but sweeping account of the earth-shattering revolts that began in Tunis and continue today throughout the Middle East. Stressing the deep historical roots of the events, Filiu organizes the book around ten lessons that illuminate both the uprisings in particular and the region in general. He shows, for instance, that these movements didn't erupt out of thin air--Arabs have been fighting for their rights for more than a generation. The author sheds light on the role of youth--whose anger is power, he notes, and who embrace the message "tomorrow is yours, if you fight for it"--as well as the important role that social networks played in Tunisia and Egypt. Filiu also argues that in the aftermath, jihadists are in a difficult position, because the essentially peaceful grassroots protests in Tunisia and Egypt have undercut their message of violence and indeed have called into question their relevance. The book also reveals that, despite being somewhat overshadowed by the Arab uprising, Palestine remains the central concern throughout the Middle East. By shining a light on these lessons rather than providing a strictly chronological account, Filiu provides a far richer and deeper portrait of the revolutionary movements sweeping the region--as well as an insightful look at life in the Middle East today.

The Arab Revolution: Ten Lessons from the Democratic Uprising (Comparative Politics and International Studies)

This is an eye-opening exploration of a troubling phenomenon: the fast-growing belief in Muslim countries that the end of the world is at handand with it the Great Battle,” prophesied by both Sunni and Shii tradition, which many believers expect will begin in the Afghan-Pakistani borderlands. Jean-Pierre Filiu uncovers the role of apocalypse in Islam over the centuries, and highlights its extraordinary resurgence in recent decades. Identifying 1979 as a decisive year in the rise of contemporary millenarian speculation, he stresses the ease with which subsequent events in the Middle East have been incorporated into the intellectual universe of apocalyptic propagandists. Filiu also shows how Christian and Jewish visions of the Final Judgment have stimulated alarmist reaction in Islamic lands, both in the past and today, and examines the widespread fear of Christian Zionist domination as an impetus to jihad. Though the overwhelming majority of Muslims remains unpersuaded, the mounting conviction in the imminence of apocalypse is a serious matter, especially for those who are preparing for it.

Apocalypse in Islam

University of California Press

This is an eye-opening exploration of a troubling phenomenon: the fast-growing belief in Muslim countries that the end of the world is at hand―and with it the “Great Battle,” prophesied by both Sunni and Shi`i tradition, which many believers expect will begin in the Afghan-Pakistani borderlands. Jean-Pierre Filiu uncovers the role of apocalypse in Islam over the centuries, and highlights its extraordinary resurgence in recent decades. Identifying 1979 as a decisive year in the rise of contemporary millenarian speculation, he stresses the ease with which subsequent events in the Middle East have been incorporated into the intellectual universe of apocalyptic propagandists. Filiu also shows how Christian and Jewish visions of the Final Judgment have stimulated alarmist reaction in Islamic lands, both in the past and today, and examines the widespread fear of Christian Zionist domination as an impetus to jihad. Though the overwhelming majority of Muslims remains unpersuaded, the mounting conviction in the imminence of apocalypse is a serious matter, especially for those who are preparing for it.

The Middle East, often referred to as the cradle of the three monotheisms, is saturated with symbolism. Situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa and Europe, it is a land marked by the rich confluence of religions and peoples.&nbsp; At the same time, it has been the focal point of endemic tensions and conflicts, many of which stretch back into the mists of time.&nbsp; In this new history of the Middle East, Jean-Pierre Filiu looks beyond religion and focuses his attention on the processes by which powers and their areas of domination were established over time.&nbsp; His starting point is 395 AD, the year when the Roman Empire was divided into eastern and western halves: at that point, the Middle East emerged as a specific entity, freed from external domination, and a Christianity of the East asserted itself, turned towards Byzantium rather than towards Rome.&nbsp; From this point on, Filiu follows a strictly Middle Eastern dynamics, tracing the rise and fall of powers linked to the three principal poles of Egypt, Syria and Iraq and recounting the procession of empires, invasions and assertions of imperialist ambition that have characterized the region since then.&nbsp; The book closes in 2022, when the men and women of the Middle East are still struggling for the right to define their destiny by telling their stories in their own voices. This magisterial and up-to-date history of the Middle East will be essential reading for students and scholars of history and politics and for anyone interested in history of one of the most important and contested regions of the modern world.

The Middle East: A Political History from 395 to the Present

Ancient Civilizations

Polity

The democratic uprising throughout the Arab world is proving how wrong were the hitherto accepted political alternatives, either dictatorship or Islamism. Yet more lessons are already being learnt from this grass-root process, even while it is in the making. Above all,  when it comes to freedom and justice, there is no definitely no Arab exceptionalism. Social networks have been crucial in empowering a leaderless movement, where the generational factor is striking. The Facebook-savvy globalized youngsters from the urban middle class are key, but it is from the wrong side of town that disenfranchised youths spearheaded the Tunisian revolution. Ruling regimes everywhere are striving to adapt, while major sectors of the opposition favour prolonged transitional periods to rebuild the devastated political scene. The challenge is historical for the Muslim Brotherhood in its various national forms, with a strong appeal for the Turkish model of government participation, even under constraints. But the main losers could be the jihadi  groups whose discourse and violence have been invalidated by the mass protests and their pluralist agendas. Even though the situation is still volatile, nothing will be the same again in the Arab world, and a preliminary assessment of this major revolution underlines what else might change and at what cost.

Arab Revolution

C. Hurst & Co. Publishers Ltd.

“Best of Enemies is surely destined to stand alongside Marjane Satrapi’s Persepolis as a graphic history of the Middle East. A must read for anyone interested in learning, or teaching, about the region.”—Mark Levine, professor of history at UC-Irvine and author of Heavy Metal Islam In the third volume of their graphic history of US and Middle East relations, Jean-Pierre Filiu and David B. take in the tumultuous period that began with Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait in 1990 and ended with Obama’s decision, in 2013, not to intervene in Syria. Spanning the First Gulf War, the rise of al-Qaeda, the military response to September 11, and the present conflict in Syria, Best of Enemies: Part Three is propelled by a clash between four presidents and their Middle Eastern antagonists: on the one hand, George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama; on the other, Saddam Hussein, Osama bin Laden, and Bashar al-Assad. Covering 30 years of conflict and diplomacy, Best of Enemies: Part Three is a breezy and engaging guide to the events that shaped the politics of today.

Best of Enemies: A History of US and Middle East Relations, Part One: 1783-1953

Comics & Graphic Novels

B., David

Graphic Novels

Harry N. Abrams

TThe second volume of Jean-Pierre Filiu and David B.’s graphic novel history of US–Middle East relations begins in the 1950s with the Eisenhower Doctrine and ends with the Lebanese War of 1982. A perceptive and authoritative account of this turbulent historical period, Best of Enemies provides an overview of the Six-Day War between Israel and the neighboring states of Egypt, Jordan, and Syria; the Iranian Revolution of 1979; the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan; and other Middle Eastern conflicts involving the United States. A beautifully drawn account of the time period, Best of Enemies is a milestone of graphic novel reportage and of great relevance to the current political situation in the Middle East.

Best of Enemies: A History of US and Middle East Relations, Part Two: 1954-1984

Gauvin, Edward

Selfmadehero

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Filiu, Jean-Pierre. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Filiu, Jean-Pierre

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Filiu, Jean-Pierre. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Gaza: A History (Comparative Politics and International Studies)

From Deep State to Islamic State: The Arab Counter-Revolution and its Jihadi Legacy (CERI Series in Comparative Politics and International Studies)

Gaza: A History

The Arab Revolution: Ten Lessons from the Democratic Uprising (Comparative Politics and International Studies)

Apocalypse in Islam

Apocalypse in Islam

The Middle East: A Political History from 395 to the Present

Arab Revolution

Best of Enemies: A History of US and Middle East Relations, Part One: 1783-1953

Best of Enemies: A History of US and Middle East Relations, Part Two: 1954-1984