The Transformation of Palestinian Politics

“Barry Rubin’s timely Transformation of Palestinian Politics provides a superb and weighty account of the complexities of the Palestinian problem and the significant impediments to state-building… As deputy director of the Begin–Sadat Center for Strategic Studies, Rubin is well acquainted with Palestinian political life, having written several notable books on the subject. In his most recent effort, he carefully delineates the path of transition or pre-statehood for the current PA—complete will all its bumps and turns… Rubin covers in rich and penetrating detail the deleterious effects of the fledgling Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) on the Arafat-led government-in-training, the rising expectations of a long-suffering and dispossessed people and the controversial issues of democratic development and respect for human rights.”—Peter McKenna, Washington Post Book World

“In this judicious and thoughtful book, Rubin describes the Palestinian’s slow walk towards statehood, one riddled with contradictions and burdened by deep-seated historical animosities. Analyzing both the Palestinians’ noticeable failures and surprising successes, Rubin offers a prognosis for the future with the measured optimism of someone who has watched the conflict unfold from up-close for some time.”—Kate Cambor, Boston Book Review

“In his excellent The Transformation of Palestinian Politics, Rubin wants critics of Yassar Arafat and the Palestinian Authority to temper their disparaging comments with a hefty dose of reality: Specifically, he says, there will be no Palestinian state without a peace agreement with Israel and a solid institutional foundation… Rubin is well qualified to chronicle the path of transition or pre-statehood, with its unpredictable twists and turns. By specifically homing in on the transitional, or embryonic phase, Rubin seeks to situate legitimate criticisms of the 1993–95 Oslo Accords within the context of incredibly complex and difficult growing pains for an essentially interim government.”—Peter McKenna, Globe and Mail

“Rubin…manages a balanced presentation of all the many different players in this ongoing Palestinian drama—Yasir Arafat, the PLO, Hamas, the many Israeli political groupings, the Arab states, the United States, and the international community. With nine detailed but succinct chapters, this book is an eminently readable achievement.”—L. Carl Brown, Foreign Affairs

“[A]n objective, even sympathetic, account of Palestinian politics since 1993.”—Sol Schindler, Washington Times

“Barry Rubin, deputy director of the Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies at Bar-Ilan University, is a keen observer of the Middle East. The Transformation of Palestinain Politics is a cogent analysis of the challenges facing the Palestinian Authority today.”—Sheldon Kirshner, Canadian Jewish News

“Excellent. Rubin has taken up a subject that is seemingly familiar (Palestinians feature almost daily in the news) but is in fact unknown (how the Palestinian Authority actually operates). There is nothing remotely comparable to this book in English. He writes about obscure but vital aspects of the Palestinian Authority with a sure hand. The greatest strength of the book lies in its providing new information in a clear context. Rubin’s sources are excellent, his judgment reliable. The writing style is solid. The study significantly advances knowledge about its subject matter.”—Daniel Pipes, Middle East Quarterly

“In this highly readable book, Rubin examines the prospect of Palestinian statehood… Drawing on an impressive array of English, Hebrew, and Arabic sources, the author explores a complicated maze of interaction between Yasser Arafat’s Palestinian Authority and its internal opponents. Crucially, the book also places the Palestinian Authority’s struggle in the context of Israeli and regional politics.”—Nader Entessar, Library Journal

“Rubin is the first to take a detailed and systematic look at the issues—not surprising given that the subject did not exist before 1994—and therein lies the main contribution of the book. He provides an interesting overview of what will undoubtedly be a subject of continuing investigation over the years. The book should be of considerable interest to students of Middle Eastern, and especially Palestinian and Israeli–Palestinian politics. Rubin presents a balanced (even sympathetic) account of the challenges facing the Palestinian Authority, shows how relatively stable post-revolutionary institutions have already been built, and concludes with a sanguine view of the prospects for successful state-building in the future. The book is argued in a fairly persuasive fashion, the organization is logical, the scholarship is sound (no polemics or distortion of evidence), and the conclusions are judicious.”—Mark A. Heller, Jaffee Center for Strategic Studies, Tel Aviv University

“[A] fair treatment of the subject, the transformation of the PLO from a military–political organization to the force behind the establishment of a Palestinian state. Rubin is well informed, and the book is based on a wide selection of Arabic language sources, as well as Israeli and English language.”—Walter Laqueur, Center for Strategic and International Studies, Washington