By
– September 1, 2011
In his forward to this important publication Harry Hurwitz, a longtime friend of the former Prime Minister, recalls that: “Letter writing, [Menachem Begin] lamented, was a dying skill. Language was being robbed of precision and clarity.” Unfortunately there is a paucity of the immensely interesting and important correspondence between Begin and Egypt’s president Anwar Sadat. The editors have brought together this limited correspondence and transcripts of various speeches the two leaders gave on the subject of peace between 1977 – 1982.
The origins of the Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty lie in Anwar Sadat’s decision to accept an invitation to speak to Israel’s Knesset in November, 1977. In the speech he dwelled on the role of God, who he mentioned fourteen times, in the peace process and the importance of settling the Palestinian issue. Begin, for his part, stressed the Jewish people’s connection to the land of Israel: “It is my duty today to tell our guests and all the nations who are watching us and listening to our words about the bond between our people and this Land.” The subsequent exchanges of letters between the two leaders illustrate their personalities and views on a variety of issues.
The primary sources compiled here both illustrate the complexity of the peace process and are a timely publication in light of the current upheavals in Egypt and throughout the Middle East. Concise, helpful notes throughout the text provide the reader with necessary information and background. The volume will probably be most helpful to scholars or professionals as it combines, for the first time, the entire correspondence between Begin and Sadat in an accessible format.
Appendix of Knesset speeches, text of Camp David Accords and text of Peace treaty between Israel and Egypt, bibliography.
The origins of the Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty lie in Anwar Sadat’s decision to accept an invitation to speak to Israel’s Knesset in November, 1977. In the speech he dwelled on the role of God, who he mentioned fourteen times, in the peace process and the importance of settling the Palestinian issue. Begin, for his part, stressed the Jewish people’s connection to the land of Israel: “It is my duty today to tell our guests and all the nations who are watching us and listening to our words about the bond between our people and this Land.” The subsequent exchanges of letters between the two leaders illustrate their personalities and views on a variety of issues.
The primary sources compiled here both illustrate the complexity of the peace process and are a timely publication in light of the current upheavals in Egypt and throughout the Middle East. Concise, helpful notes throughout the text provide the reader with necessary information and background. The volume will probably be most helpful to scholars or professionals as it combines, for the first time, the entire correspondence between Begin and Sadat in an accessible format.
Appendix of Knesset speeches, text of Camp David Accords and text of Peace treaty between Israel and Egypt, bibliography.
Seth J. Frantzman received his Ph.D. from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem where he currently holds a Post-Doctoral Fellowship. He is a columnist for the Jerusalem Post and Fellow at the Jerusalem Institute of Market Studies.
