|
|
Article: Whose Israel is it? After 50 years, the nation's Jewish solidarity has dissolved into tribal clashes. (changes in social identity of modern Israeli state since its inception in 1948)(includes related article)
- Article from:
- Newsweek
- Article date:
- April 20, 1998
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1998 Newsweek, Inc. All rights reserved. Any reuse, distribution or alteration without express written permission of Newsweek is prohibited. For permission: www.newsweek.com. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
|
After 50 years, the nation's Jewish solidarity has dissolved into tribal clashes.
They are the faces of Israel Past and Israel Present, and they could hardly be more different. When the Jewish state proclaimed its independence 50 years ago, its leader and first prime minister was Polish-born David Ben-Gurion, a white-haired, secular patriarch who intended to create a distinctively Israeli Jew. His vision: a thoroughly Westernized democrat who speaks Hebrew, embraces socialism and respects religion, while accepting without question the supremacy of a secular state. By now the liberal, European-descended elites who founded the nation have been displaced by a right-wing ...