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Assaf Sharon

Assaf Sharon is Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Tel Aviv University and Co-Chair of Molad: The Center for the Renewal of Israeli Democracy. (November 2019)

Follow Assaf Sharon on Twitter: @AssafSharon.

IN THE REVIEW

The Long Paralysis of the Israeli Left

Yitzhak Rabin addressing Israeli troops, Sidon, Lebanon, 1985

Killing a King: The Assassination of Yitzhak Rabin and the Remaking of Israel

by Dan Ephron

Yitzhak Rabin: Soldier, Leader, Statesman

by Itamar Rabinovich
The Israeli political system is in a weird stalemate. Two general elections in under six months have so far failed to produce a governing coalition. The sticking point is entirely personal—the fate of Bejamin Netanyahu as he faces multiple criminal indictments. After more than ten years in office, Netanyahu continues to dominate Israeli politics. As the recent election results show, this is not because he enjoys the support of a solid majority of voters, but because of the lack of a persuasive alternative. Israeli liberals are cowed by the right’s political thuggery, demoralized by decades of failure, and weakened by mediocre leadership. Afraid to articulate their values and terrified of challenging Netanyahu’s nationalism, many on the left have reverted to a meaningless centrism, assuming that the only way to defeat him is by offering a more civilized, noncorrupt version of his politics.

The Jewish Terrorists

A British army officer and troops outside of the King David Hotel, which had been bombed by the underground Zionist group the Irgun, Jerusalem, July 1946

Anonymous Soldiers: The Struggle for Israel, 1917–1947

by Bruce Hoffman

The Reckoning: Death and Intrigue in the Promised Land—A True Detective Story

by Patrick Bishop
The roots of contemporary Jewish terrorism lie in the radical movements and individuals who roamed Palestine in the 1930s and 1940s. Two new books, Bruce Hoffman’s Anonymous Soldiers and Patrick Bishop’s The Reckoning, explore these roots.

Failure in Gaza

In Israel, endless controversy over Gaza has overlooked one question: How did we get here in the first place? Why, after a considerable period of relative calm, did Hamas resume rocket fire into Israel?