Contending approaches to security in ısrael: 1948-2000

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2008
Başer, Zeynep
This thesis provides an analysis of Israel’s security conceptions, discourses and practices, in the context of the Arab–Israeli conflict in general and the Israeli–Palestinian conflict in particular, between 1948 and 2000. The purpose of the study is, to explore those processes through which particular definitions and practices of security have been produced and changed, against the background of the domestic debates and competing worldviews among key political actors; and to highlight the overall impact of these points in different periods on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and, thus, on Israel’s overall security. In this context, it is observed that the debates among the political actors, regarding the future borders and the identity of the state, have played a key role in the construction and reconstruction of Israeli security policy particularly vis-à-vis the Palestinian problem. Nevertheless, it is also observed that the extent of these differences has been limited to the objectives of the security policy, and that a zero-sum conception of security, and the primacy of military means to confront the perceived threats have prevailed as common characteristics of Israeli security understanding, informing Israel’s related practices. Along these lines the thesis considers the Oslo peace process as an anomaly, and tries to assess it within the framework of the continuities and changes it has introduced to thinking and acting about security in Israel.

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Citation Formats
Z. Başer, “Contending approaches to security in ısrael: 1948-2000,” M.S. - Master of Science, Middle East Technical University, 2008.