Violence and war have raged between Zionists and Palestinians for over a century, ever since Zionists, trying to establish a nation-state in Palestine, were forced to confront the fact that the country was already populated. Covering every conflict in Israel’s history, War over Peace reveals that Israeli nationalism was born ethnic and militaristic and has embraced these characteristics to this day. In his sweeping and original synthesis, Uri Ben-Eliezer shows that this militaristic nationalism systematically drives Israel to find military solutions for its national problems, based on the idea that the homeland is sacred and the territory is indivisible. When Israelis opposed to this ideology brought about change during a period that led to the Oslo Accords in the 1990s, cultural and political forces, reinforced by religious and messianic elements, prevented the implementation of the agreements, which brought violence back in the form of new wars. War over Peace is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand the role of ethnic nationalism and militarism in Israel as well as throughout the world.

"Offers an insightful and comprehensive analysis of one hundred years of Israeli conflicts from late nineteenth-century Zionism to current-day Israel. . . . A welcomed contribution, which should not only have a lasting impact on the study of civil-military relations in Israel but also contribute significantly to our broader understanding of militarism and its interaction with nationalist ideologies." - H-Diplo | H-Net

"War over Peace deserves attention for its penetrating analysis of the role of culture and ideology in shaping Israeli settler-colonialism." - Electronic Intifada