By Jonathan Dimbleby and Don McCullin CBE

One of the most important books published about the Palestinian people and their quest for a homeland. The issue has assumed an even greater importance following the most recent war in Gaza.

Synopsis

In 1980, Jonathan Dimbleby and Don McCullin wrote a seminal book on the plight of the Palestinian people from the creation of the state of Israel in 1948 onwards. It chronicled their struggles and their dreams of a homeland.

Through extensive interviews, it gave a voice to the people: to the old men who were children when the Balfour Declaration prepared the way for the exodus from Palestine; to the children who were born in the diaspora and who were then willing to contemplate certain death in a guerilla war rather than surrender the right to their homeland. The Palestinians is about individuals – lawyers, doctors, diplomats, craftsmen, students, labourers, businessmen, politicians, soldiers, fighters and peasants. Through them the book explores the crisis of a people without a land, demonstrating that the ‘Palestinian problem’ is not an abstract issue but an urgent human tragedy. Until this is recognized, Jonathan Dimbleby argues, in an updated foreword, there can be no just or lasting peace in the Middle East.

About the authors

Jonathan Dimbleby is a renowned journalist, writer and filmmaker based in England. He spent many decades with the BBC and ITV. His five-part series on Russia was broadcast by BBC2 and accompanied by his book Russia: A Journal to the Heart of a Land and its People. Destiny in the Desert was recently nominated for the Hessell-Tiltman History Prize.

Don McCullin CBE is an internationally-acclaimed photojournalist. In 1961 he won the British Press Award for his essay on the construction of the Berlin Wall. His first taste of war came in Cyprus, 1964, where he covered the armed eruption of ethnic and nationalistic tension, winning a World Press Photo Award for his efforts. In 1993 he was the first photojournalist to be awarded a CBE. As recently as October 2015, McCullin travelled to Kurdistan in northern Iraq to photograph the Kurds’ three-way struggle with ISIS, Syria and Turkey.

Reviews

“Jonathan Dimbleby has given a voice to the Palestinians and Don McCullin allows us to see and feel the heart breaking anguish of these desperate people.” Amazon review.

“A book everyone should read, including Donald Trump. It gives a clear, accurate history of the origins of the Israeli/ Palestinian conflict that persists in Israel and what’s left of Palestine today.” Goodreads review.

“This is an excellent book to learn about the Palestinians and what actually happened to them. Give it a try… you’ll broaden your horizons.” Amazon review.