Journalist Writes Comprehensive Book on Human Side of '48 War
By CHARLOTTE DUBIN
The human side of Israel's first
war with the Arabs emerges in a
new book, "Genesis 1948," whose
author says he sought to reach the
"Exodus" audience.
Dan Kurzman, a journalist and
author, was in Detroit Wednesday
to promote his book, published by
the World Publishing Co. The Anti-
Defamation League of Bnai Brith
is assisting in the promotion effort.
issuing brochures and arranging
talks with Christian leaders.
Kurzman, a former correspond-
ent for the Washington Post, has
authored three
earlier books, one
of which, "Sub-
version of the In-
nocents," won the
Overseas Press
Club Award in
1963 for the
year's best book
on foreign affairs.
Boston University
has established a
Dan Kurzman Kurzman
Collection in recognition of his "im-
portant contribution to 20th Cen-
tury journalism and historical
literature."
For "Genesis 1948 — the First
Arab-Israeli War," Kurzman con-
ducted some 1,000 interviews in
Israel, the Arab states, Europe and
the U.S. Among the hundreds of
secret documents to which he was
allowed access were the 1948 me-
moirs of the then Capt. Gamal
Abdel Nasser.
"In them, he revealed his utter
frustration and the feeling that
his government, under Farouk,
was sending the army down a
garden path, using the men as
cannon fodder," said Kurzman.
"Nasser wanted to go to war
with the Jews for two reasons: be-
cause he felt a war in Palestine
would be an easy war with the so-
called 'Zionist bands,' and because
it would permit him to place his
free officers in key positions with
the government. This actually hap-
pened in 1952."
Kurzman relates how a close
friendship developed between Nas-
ser and Yeroham Cohen, an Israeli
officer, during 1948 truce talks.
"They would sit on the grass under
the trees and discuss politics."
The writer insists that "Nasser
is no out-and-out anti-Semite. The
Jews who know him don't feel he
ever was. In fact, the Israelis were
delighted when he first came to
power. They thought he , would
bring about reforms.
"At the beginning, he did have
ideas of peace, but gradually his
social revolution didn't come off.
Israel was a good external threat,
and he wanted to consolidate his
influence in the Middle East. So
Israel became useful for his own
political ends. He just carried
things too far."
Nasser. whose "charisma will
make the Arabs support him wheth-
er he wins or loses," nevertheless
will not be able to control the guer-
rilla element, Kurzman believes.
"I met a lot of them. They're not
rational people. They say, 'If we
die, we die.'"
The "only comprehensive book
ever written on the 1948 war"—in
the a utho r's words — "Genesis
1948" pursues other little-known
facets of that period, when peace
seemed much closer than it does
today.
As the Egyptian officers were
leaving for home following the war,
Nasser's superior, Col. Taha, met
with his Israeli counterparts, in-
cluding Capt. Cohen and Itzhak
Rabin. Taha turned to Cohen and
said: "You've done a wonderful
job, and I hope you'll be the first
ambassador to Egypt."
Kurzman said that during his
research, he was supplied with
heretofore-unseen papers that re-
flected the sharp dispute between
the State Department and Presi-
dent Truman over recognition
of the state of Israel.
The papers were made available
by Clark Clifford. who had served
as Truman's top adviser and later
16 Friday, August 7, 1970
—
was secretary of state under Presi-
dent Johnson..
"Truman felt he was double-
crossed by the State Department."
said Kurzman. "Clifford, more than
any other man, influenced Truman
to recognize Israel."
According to the author, the man
most opposed to recognition of Is-
rael was Dean Rusk, then assistant
secretary of state. "He felt Israel
would become Communist and
would be overly influenced by the
Soviet Union."
Stressing that his illustrated
book is a "human document about
the war." Kurzman related inci-
dents among the little people, like
the Jerusalem couple— he Jewish
and she Moslem—whose five sons
were reared as Jews and five
daughters as Moslems. "In the
war, the tension was unbelievable.
The Arabs murdered one of the
sons as a traitor."
One of the most interesting
narratives in the book relates to
the Rhodes peace conference,
which set a precendent for cur-
rent talks between Israel and
Egypt.
"The Arabs say they've never
met Israelis face-to-face before,
but that's not true," said Kurzman.
"It happened in Rhodes: I have
verbatim conference papers."
The talks started coolly, but
gradually became warm and direct
"They argued and joked. When the
chief Egyptian delegate became ill.
the Israelis visited him and brought
roses. They played billiards with
each other. After the armistice
talks were concluded, they had a
gay party."
Among the Israeli principals in
those talks, which were spread
over a few weeks, were Yigal
Yadin, then acting chief of staff of
the Israel Army, and Itzhak Rabin,
today the ambassador to the U.S.
but at that time a high-ranking
army officer.
As for secret talks in Amman
between Jordan and Israel, at
which Moshe Dayan and Golda
Meir were present, "Abdullah (Jor-
dan's king) treated the Israelis
like his sons. He kept rushing in,
dressed in his nightgown, asking
'Has there been an agreement yet?
Has it come yet?'" Kurzman de-
scribed the proceedings as a comic-
opera.
`Genesis' Marked
by Thoroughness
Few books on Israel are as vital
to current comparisons and to an
understanding of what had occur-
red in the Israel-Arab conflicts as
"Genesis 1948—The First Arab-
Israeli War" by Dan Kurzman,
published by World.
The great value of this immense
study by a former Washington
Post staff member lies in the
thoroughness with which his work
covers the negotiations that were
conducted by Israel's representa-
tives with King Abdullah, whose
assassination prevented an im-
mediate peace agreement; the
Rhodes negotiations; the talks be-
tween Nasser and Israeli military
leaders; and a score of other in-
cidents that now indicate how
peace could have been attained and
how it was scuttled by unforeseen
circumstances.
The Rhodes talks, under the
direction of Dr Ralph Bunche,
are r e c o u n t e d here in such
thoroughness, that the Kurzman
"Genesis" book could well serve
as a guide to current negotia-
tions about to be initiated under
the direction of Dr. Gunnar
Jarring.
Kurzman's recapitulation of the
events at Rhodes. the debates be-
tween Arabs and Jews, the pro-
posals and counter-proposals, the
bargaining over positions to be re-
tained by Israel and Egypt, reads
like a romance.
There is fascination in every ac-
count offered here of what had I
transpired, and there is the inter-
esting story of a friendship between
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS I
and Hebrew. We wish to speak , said they had information that the
with you only about an agreement I Mufti planned to provoke a con-
I frontation between the Jews and
based on such a resolution."
The King then asked: "What! the Arab Legion, as the Transjor-
would your attitude be to an at- danian army was called, by attack-
tempt by Transjordan to take con- ing the Jews with his own fighters
trol of the Arab part of Palestine?" masquerading in Legion uniforms.
"I appreciate the information,"
Mrs.Meir looked more at ease.
Abdullah said, with an amused
"We would view such action in a
smile, "but such a confrontation.
favorable light," she said, "especi-
or any other, is utterly impossible.
ally if Your Majesty undertakes
You can remove that possibility
not to interfere with our efforts
from your minds. I will give the
to set up a state and not to foster
appropriate orders. As for the
confrontations between your forces
Mufti, he is our common enemy.
and ours. We would be particular-
He should be removed to an isolat-
ly happy if you declared that such
ed area . . I would suggest that
action was taken in order to main-
he be transferred to Transjordan.
tain law and order and keep the
. him!"
peace until the United Nations We would take care of
When the meeting came to a
could set up a government in that
close, Abdullah escorted the Jew-
King Abdullah glanced furtively area."
It was the King who frowned ish representatives to the door and
at the tall, matronly woman with
urged rather sheepishly that they
the black hair who was chatting this time. "But I want to annex
use their influence on the Jewish
with another Transjordanian at the the area to my kingdom. I don't
press not to "discuss" him so
meeting, which took place at a want to create another Arab State
Jewish rest house in the Jordan that would ruin my plans. I want much.
"Don't pay any attention to my
to ride, not to be ridden!"
River village of Naharayim.
Mrs. Meir suggested that he hold public statements," he grinned, "I
"But Ezra, I thought Mr. Sher-
have
to make them, you know."
tok would be leading your delega- a referendum in Arab Palestine,
tion," the king whined in a soft, which he presumably could con-
1/4
The assassination of Abdullah,
trol. That would enable him to
concerned voice.
Ezra Danin, a ponderous Iraqi annex the area without United King Hussein's grandfather, pre-
vented conclusion of a sound peace
Jew who had long been a close Nations interference.
Abdullah's intelligent dark eyes agreement.
personal friend of Abdullah, smiled
All of Kurzman's "Exodus .1948"
with a casualness that suggested narrowed in doubt. Then the sub-
he had expected the question. After ject switched to a possible Arab is narrated by similar fashion, re-
constructing scores of similar con-
all, Abdullah was an Arab king. invasion of Palestine.
"I have notified the Arab pow- versations, providing records that
He didn't fancy dealing with any-
one he thought might be of sec- ers, including Iraq, that I would turn the earlier history into one
ondary importance—particularly I not allow their armies to pass of the most moving and impressive
through my kingdom," Abdullah in the history of Israel and the
woman.
"Don't worry, Your Majesty,'-" said. "I have also given notice negotiations as well as conflicts
Danin assured him, "Mrs. Myerson that I will not cooperate with any with the Arabs.
Currently, t h e reconstructed
(the original name of Mrs. Golda plan not centered in my country
Meir) is replacing Mr. Shertok and under my jurisdiction. The stories have special value. Related
and has full authority from the situation and circumstances neither to what is happening now at the
Jewish Agency to talk with you."
justify nor require war, but rather UN and the plans for Arab-Israel
The King's tawny, wrinkled face, compromise."
meetings, direct or indirect, give
framed by a neatly wound white
The Jewish representatives then Kuzman's work the merit of a most
turban and a small, frizzly-edged expressed concern that the Mufti valuable history relating to the
beard, showed guarded skepticism. might prevent compromise. They Middle East's struggles. —P. S.
When coffee and refreshments
had been served in the reception
room, Abdullah opened the discus-
sion in Arabic:
"During the last thirty years,
you have grown and strengthened
yourselves. Your achievements are
Choose from our selection of,
many. We cannot disregard you
Double Breasted Edwardian with
and we must compromise with you.
Bell Bottom trousers; Traditional
There is no quarrel between you
dinner jackets with slim trousers;
and the Arabs. The quarrel is be-
tween the Arabs and the British,
full dress with white tie and tails;
who brought you to Palestine; and
single button morning coats with
between you and the British, who
striped pants; colored formal
have not kept their promises to
shirts; patten leather shoe rental
you.
and more.
"Now, I am convinced that the
British are leaving, and we will
be left face to face. Any con-
126 S. Woodward
frontation between us will be to
(1st Sleek South of Maple on Woodward)
our own disadvantage. I will
Birmingham, Mich.
agree to a partition that will not
shame me before the Arab world.
I would like to take this oppor-
tunity of suggesting that you con-
sider the possibility of a future in-
dependent Hebrew Republic within
NEW INEXPENSIVE
a Transjordan State that would in-
clude both banks of the Jordan,
and in which the economy, the
military, and the legislature would
be divided equally."
The King then emphasized, be-
and
fore Jewish frowns could be trans-
lated into a reply, that the "He-
brew Republic" would not be domi-
nated by Transjordan but would
simply be part of the Transjordan-
Easy On and Off Your Car
ian monarchy If the Jews accept-
ed, he said enthusiastically, the
kingdom could probably expand
to embrace Syria and even Saudi
Arabia, which his father, Sherif
Hussein, once ruled.
(Abdullah had promised Sevin
at a meeting in London in Febru-
ary, 1946, that he would not press
for the establishment of an Am-
man-controlled Greater Syria. The
Introductory Discount Offer
Foreign Secretary had extracted
this pledge as part of the price for
giving Transjordan independence.)
Mrs. Meir, Russian-born librar-
ian and schoolteacher from Mil-
Your First Printing Job
waukee who had moved to Pales-
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tine in the 1920's, wore a troubled
expression that accentuated the
severit y of her lined face. Finally
27315 Southfield Rd., Lathrup Village
she retorted: "Your Majesty, our
cause is being discussed at pres-
!?
ent at the United Nations and we
are hoping for a resolution that
would establish two states—Arab I
'Nasser and the Israeli Yeroham ,
Cohen at Faluja.
A remarkable factor in the
Kurzman volume is the factual
review of the friendships that ex-
isted between Jews and Arabs,
the cordiality that was in evi-
dence between King Abdullah
and Israeli spokesmen. Dayan,
Deri, Shiloah, Allon—all played
significant roles.
There is great importance and
historic value in the description of
Abdullah's meeting with Golda
Meir in 1948. It was at the time
when she was delegated to repre-
sent in conversations with him the
late Moshe Shertok (Sharett).
Kurzman gives this account:
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