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Rise and Kill First: The Secret History of Israel's Targeted Assassinations by Ronen Bergman
socraticgadfly's review against another edition
3.0
Informative in many ways, but NOT in one HUGE way
This book is great for documenting how Mossad (foreign intell), Shin Bet (domestic intel) and Aman (military intel) combined to fight a variety of threats from various Palestinian groups, including Fatah and Hamas, plus Hezbullah in Lebanon, and Syrian and other support for some terrorists.
It documents types of operations, targets, successes, some slip-ups, organizational lapses and overhauls, and other things. Philosophies of all three groups, of individual leaders, and of the Israeli government in relation to targeted killings and other operations are also discussed.
There are also decent mini-profiles of not only Arafat but leaders of other groups and their aims and tactics, as well as of the various Israeli leaders of the three organizations and Israeli polticians.
But, since even a great book is normally at 4.5 stars for me, the one big lack, and lesser connected lacks, drop this to 3 stars.
NOT ONE WORD ABOUT THE NAKBA.
A person with little familiarity with the Middle East might just randomly buy the line of harder-core Zionists that Palestinians are ingrates, or even less than fully human.
Not one word about how, when Britain withdrew, and Israel, after attacks by Arab states, decided to expand boundaries beyond its UN mandate, and to expel, by various means, as many Arabs as it could.
The word isn't even in the index.
There's less than one word about the pre-Nakba "nakba," too. After World War I, but during the British Mandate period of control, Zionist settlers then were already trying to push Arabs off their land through threats at times, force at other times. And, succeeding often enough
Sure, the terrorism by Begin et al against the British gets brief mention. Bergman can't avoid that.
But, there's no mention of pre-Nakba land appropriation. Just of groups like Hashomer punishing Palestinian Arabs who allegedly deserved punishment.
Nor is there mention that Chaim Weizmann, even before the Balfour Declaration, said that Zionists would wait a generation or so, then start expropriating land.
None of this is to say that Arabs in either late Ottoman or British Mandate times were perfect. They weren't. Mandate-era Grand Mufti excited Arab actions against Jews. (And led protests about what was seen as pro-Jewish tiltings by Britain.)
If you want facts about what both Israel and various Palestinian and non-Palestinian groups are doing, this is a good book, as far as actual terrorist actions (though not all all by Israel are labeled that way).
If you want facts about why this is all happening, this is not at all a great book.
For that, read someone like Norman Finkelstein. https://theintercept.com/2018/05/20/norman-finkelstein-gaza-iran-israel-jerusalem-embassy/
This book is great for documenting how Mossad (foreign intell), Shin Bet (domestic intel) and Aman (military intel) combined to fight a variety of threats from various Palestinian groups, including Fatah and Hamas, plus Hezbullah in Lebanon, and Syrian and other support for some terrorists.
It documents types of operations, targets, successes, some slip-ups, organizational lapses and overhauls, and other things. Philosophies of all three groups, of individual leaders, and of the Israeli government in relation to targeted killings and other operations are also discussed.
There are also decent mini-profiles of not only Arafat but leaders of other groups and their aims and tactics, as well as of the various Israeli leaders of the three organizations and Israeli polticians.
But, since even a great book is normally at 4.5 stars for me, the one big lack, and lesser connected lacks, drop this to 3 stars.
NOT ONE WORD ABOUT THE NAKBA.
A person with little familiarity with the Middle East might just randomly buy the line of harder-core Zionists that Palestinians are ingrates, or even less than fully human.
Not one word about how, when Britain withdrew, and Israel, after attacks by Arab states, decided to expand boundaries beyond its UN mandate, and to expel, by various means, as many Arabs as it could.
The word isn't even in the index.
There's less than one word about the pre-Nakba "nakba," too. After World War I, but during the British Mandate period of control, Zionist settlers then were already trying to push Arabs off their land through threats at times, force at other times. And, succeeding often enough
Sure, the terrorism by Begin et al against the British gets brief mention. Bergman can't avoid that.
But, there's no mention of pre-Nakba land appropriation. Just of groups like Hashomer punishing Palestinian Arabs who allegedly deserved punishment.
Nor is there mention that Chaim Weizmann, even before the Balfour Declaration, said that Zionists would wait a generation or so, then start expropriating land.
None of this is to say that Arabs in either late Ottoman or British Mandate times were perfect. They weren't. Mandate-era Grand Mufti excited Arab actions against Jews. (And led protests about what was seen as pro-Jewish tiltings by Britain.)
If you want facts about what both Israel and various Palestinian and non-Palestinian groups are doing, this is a good book, as far as actual terrorist actions (though not all all by Israel are labeled that way).
If you want facts about why this is all happening, this is not at all a great book.
For that, read someone like Norman Finkelstein. https://theintercept.com/2018/05/20/norman-finkelstein-gaza-iran-israel-jerusalem-embassy/
amarj33t_5ingh's review against another edition
5.0
What makes Bergman's Rise And Kill First: The Secret History Of Israel's Targeted Assassinations decisively groundbreaking is the fact that Bergman provides a very immersive, and profoundly intimate glimpse inside the clandestine world of Mossad-seemingly the world's most effective Intelligence Service.
Bergman's primary source here is none other than the late Meir Dagan, the 10th Director of Mossad who transformed it from an antiquated and obsolete agency into a state-of-the-art espionage body capable of carrying out targeted assassinations.
And targeted assassinations form the crux of Bergman's history. The reader is shown the legal framework behind the system and the moral and ethical dilemmas arising from the practice which all branches of the Israeli military grapples with.
A very simple to comprehend and page turning biography of Israel's premier defense force.
Bergman's primary source here is none other than the late Meir Dagan, the 10th Director of Mossad who transformed it from an antiquated and obsolete agency into a state-of-the-art espionage body capable of carrying out targeted assassinations.
And targeted assassinations form the crux of Bergman's history. The reader is shown the legal framework behind the system and the moral and ethical dilemmas arising from the practice which all branches of the Israeli military grapples with.
A very simple to comprehend and page turning biography of Israel's premier defense force.
tartancrusader's review against another edition
5.0
Thoroughly absorbing and painstakingly researched
jfranco77's review against another edition
4.0
This book is an incredibly detailed history of Israel's targeted assassination and strike programs, from 1947 all the way to the present. For anyone who would want to read this book, it's probably 5 stars. It's practically a textbook - and it's definitely that well sourced.
Bergman talked to hundreds of sources, none of whom were authorized to speak with him. There's a ton of detail about the various Israeli organizations (it's more than just Mossad) and the various permutations of Arab nations and states that wish Israel harm.
For me, the book was just a little dense and a real struggle to get through at times. But it was still interesting, and now I feel really well informed.
The book is largely apolitical. Bergman criticizes where necessary, and praises where appropriate. I'll leave one quote here that probably sums up his overall vision, which IS a little bit political and opinionated, but after 700 pages of history, I think he's justified in saying it:
Bergman talked to hundreds of sources, none of whom were authorized to speak with him. There's a ton of detail about the various Israeli organizations (it's more than just Mossad) and the various permutations of Arab nations and states that wish Israel harm.
For me, the book was just a little dense and a real struggle to get through at times. But it was still interesting, and now I feel really well informed.
The book is largely apolitical. Bergman criticizes where necessary, and praises where appropriate. I'll leave one quote here that probably sums up his overall vision, which IS a little bit political and opinionated, but after 700 pages of history, I think he's justified in saying it:
Because of the phenomenal successes of Israel’s covert operations, at this stage in its history the majority of its leaders have elevated and sanctified the tactical method of combating terror and existential threats at the expense of the true vision, statesmanship, and genuine desire to reach a political solution that is necessary for peace to be attained.
briqhtkit's review against another edition
informative
fast-paced
4.0
it was a LOT of info at first and hard to focus on, but it got so interesting. relevant ofc and the author clearly did a lot of research. the last couple pages!!!
ninaandtheb00ks's review against another edition
5.0
This is one of my favorite non-fiction books. It tells the story of the intelligence services of Israel, with a special focus on its targeted killings, from the time of the Yishuv until now. In order to do so, Ronen Bergman has interviewed countless state officials, who are directly quoted in his retelling. What I appreciate about this book is that it doesn’t only tell the success stories, but also discloses the wrongdoings and even blatant failures, which are sometimes so amateurish that they’re almost funny. I also liked that even though a large part of this book is about the conflict with Palestine, the author has tried to remain objective, and makes an effort to include both sides of the story. He’s honest: none of the players are pure and all of them are selfish. It’s quite a pill (800+ pages), filled with moral and strategic dilemma’s and a shocking amount of assassinations. I thought it was very informative; there was so much information that I think I already forgot half of it. Nonetheless, highly recommendable and thoroughly enjoyable.