The 50 Years War - Israel & The Arabs

Starring:Will Lyman
Director: Norma Percy, Dai Richards, Brian Lapping
Studio: Pbs Home Video
Product Type: DVD

Editorial Review:
Amazon.com
The conflict in the Middle East between Israel and its neighbors is given comprehensive treatment in this two-video set produced by PBS. Using archival footage and extensive interviews with participants, the production begins by explaining conditions in Palestine at the end of World War II and the crisis created by the exodus of European Jews who went to the Middle East after the Holocaust. The withdrawal of the British, who had controlled Palestine for decades, is detailed, as is the creation of the state of Israel. Much of the region's history is complex, with the local struggles being conducted at times as a part of the cold war between the United States and the Soviet Union, but these videos do an admirable job of explaining the complexities of the situation. The segment on the Six Day War, for example, is masterful, with the scenes shifting from Israel to Egypt to Washington to Moscow, the story developing before the viewer's eyes. The 50 Years War is often a tale of mistrust and betrayal, but this production strives to present a balanced view of history, and is not only impressive for its command of the facts but for its skillful and often dramatic presentation of history. --Robert J. McNamara
Description
Leading statesmen, generals, terrorists and others who made the headlines in one of history's most bitter and enduring struggles tell the story of the Arab-Israeli conflict in The 50 Years War: Israel and the Arabs. Opening with the U.N decision to partition Palestine in 1947, the program charts the ensuing half-century of enmity, warfare, mediation and negotiation.

Amazon.com

The conflict in the Middle East between Israel and its neighbors is given comprehensive treatment in this two-video set produced by PBS. Using archival footage and extensive interviews with participants, the production begins by explaining conditions in Palestine at the end of World War II and the crisis created by the exodus of European Jews who went to the Middle East after the Holocaust. The withdrawal of the British, who had controlled Palestine for decades, is detailed, as is the creation of the state of Israel. Much of the region's history is complex, with the local struggles being conducted at times as a part of the cold war between the United States and the Soviet Union, but these videos do an admirable job of explaining the complexities of the situation. The segment on the Six Day War, for example, is masterful, with the scenes shifting from Israel to Egypt to Washington to Moscow, the story developing before the viewer's eyes. The 50 Years War is often a tale of mistrust and betrayal, but this production strives to present a balanced view of history, and is not only impressive for its command of the facts but for its skillful and often dramatic presentation of history. --Robert J. McNamara

Description

Leading statesmen, generals, terrorists and others who made the headlines in one of history's most bitter and enduring struggles tell the story of the Arab-Israeli conflict in The 50 Years War: Israel and the Arabs. Opening with the U.N decision to partition Palestine in 1947, the program charts the ensuing half-century of enmity, warfare, mediation and negotiation.

Customer Reviews:

Great movie but I received an "ILLEGAL COPY".......2006-09-17

Great movie, but I'm still dissapointed with the seller.

I received my "copy" on time, kind of cheap for a $1.00 DVD+ disc

Very objective.......2006-05-27

This is one of the best and most objective documentaries on the Arab-Israeli conflict. It covers the origins of this conflict since the days of the British mandate during which the mandate power failed to coerce coexistence of the two communities, the native Arabs and the growing Jewish one that was flooding into Palestine not only from oppressive Nazi Europe but also from other non-aligned countries around the world including Ottoman Arab states that prior to the creation of the state of Israel in 1948, did not show any significant hostility toward their Jewish communities.
The British mandate came to an end on May 15, 1948 when David Ben Guerion - Israel's first president - announced the creation of the state. This announcement made the armies of five surrounding Arab countries namely Egypt, Jordan, Iraq, Syria and Lebanon invade Palestinian in an attempt to restore the status quo in favor of the Arab community and wipe out the new infant Jewish state.
But unfolding events showed that while the Israelis had carefully done their homework by raising funds from Jews in the Diaspora, arming their militias and conscripting most of their able fighters, the Arabs had underestimated the Jews by sending in small armies without enough ammunition. The Jewish victory resulted in some Israeli ethnic cleansing of Palestinians in some areas. When the Arabs propagated such news to win sympathy of the world, they had actually spread fears among further Palestinian villagers who further flee their hometowns.
But the conflict was not over in 1948 after Palestine was divided and in 1967, a rematch between the Arabs under the leadership of Egyptian dictator Gamal Abdul-Nasser and Israel resulted in further humiliating losses for the Arabs and this time Israel swept the whole of historic Palestine land along with the Egyptian Sinai and the Syrian Golan. A third war in 1973 resulted in a stalemate and opened negotiations that led to a peace treaty between Israel and Egypt in 1979, and Jordan and the Palestinian Liberation Organization in 1993.
The film is extremely well researched and narrated and the footages it has are extremely valuable. If you are interested in the Arab-Israeli conflict, this film should find its way to your library.

the greatest documentry series ever made.......2005-11-26

at first you think that the middle-east crisis is something that is happening far away in another country but when she this film you will release this unpleasent situation is like a suffering animal at second you think it doesn`t effects then it gives you an unpleasant correction it does effect us all and all it is great documentry.

The game known as the Middle East.......2005-04-07

After watching this DVD, I was amazed at how countries play war as though it were a game. Egypt, Israel, Syria, Jordan, and Lebanon fight over land that the Jews took from the Palestinians.

What I am curious about is, if Jews wanted to live in Israel so badly and felt it was their right to take the land, why did they willingly live in other countries prior to 1948.

It does not really seem fair to the Palestinians to be kicked off the land they had occupied for several years.

It's probably something similar to the White Man taking over North America from Native Americans.

Another amazing thing was how easily the Palestinians gave up their land originally considering how bitterly they have fought the Israelis from that point on.

You have to give the Israeli's credit too; they knocked out Egypt, Jordan and Syria when those countries decided to wage war on Israel.

According to the DVD, the Jews were outnumbered 40 million to 1 million and still won. That's pretty impressive.

While nobody should be forcibly removed from their land, the methods the Palestinians or more specifically the P.L.O. used in trying to regain the territory is ridiculous.

If the Israeli's weren't going to back down to 3 more powerful countries who were going to attack them, what do you think of the probability that suicide bombers and having kids throw stones at the Israeli military will do?

Another troubling thing about the Palestinians was their hardheaded attitude in negotiating with the Jews.

For example, when P.L.O. leader Arafat was offered the Gaza strip, he demanded a road to the West Bank as well which would have split Israel in two. He also demanded Israel's capital Jerusalem be handed over as well.

Why not get your foot in the door and then work on getting more. By demanding all or nothing, Arafat guaranteed that nothing for the Palestinians would improve.

Even when a peace treaty was finally worked out, Palestinians continued the suicide bombing which gave Israel any permission it needed to continue the Palestinians oppression.

I worked with a Jewish person once and tried to get insight as to how Jews think.

He told me that because the Jews laid down and were almost eliminated in WW2, the people have a new attitude about survival.

The new attitude being, "if you step on my foot, I'm going to try to break your leg."

Ariel Sharon definitely adopted this model and let us not forget that Israeli's can play hardball too. They have terrorist groups just as the P.L.O. does.

Overall, it's a good study on two very tough-minded peoples who will fight for their own way to the end.

gripping and genuinely unbiased British documentary.......2005-01-29

This is one of the most gripping documentaries I've ever seen. The more nobel aspects, and the less morally sound aspects of both sides are covered in detail. Excellent work created by 1 Palestinian and 1 Israeli for the BBC (even though the blurb above calls it a PBS show, and indeed so does the generic intro on the DVD - it was actually made by the BBC, not an American company, just thought I'd clear that up)

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