More than an account of horror, Amir Tibons riveting book is a story of courage. Tibons extraordinary family and community offer a glimpse into Israel's resilience, and help explain why it may be premature to despair over the hope for peace.
-- Yossi Klein Halevi, senior fellow, Shalom Hartman Institute, and author of
Letters to My Palestinian NeighborIn The Gates of Gaza, Amir Tibon recounts both his own story of rescue on October 7, as well as the complicated history of the IsraeliGaza border region that he calls home. He is a chronicler, an observer, and a participant in this story, which he tells with real emotional power.
-- Anne Applebaum, author of
Red FamineAmir Tibon has captured the horror and hope of October 7 in this compelling story of Hamas murderous rampage across southern Israel, of his familys agonising experience in their safe room while terrorists roamed outside, and of the heroism of his father, Noam, who came to their rescue. The Gates of Gaza would be an engrossing read if it were fiction; the fact that it is a true story is simply extraordinary.
-- Daniel Kurtzer, former US Ambassador to Israel and Egypt
A riveting minute by minute account of one of Israels darkest days, Amir Tibons telling of his familys horrific ordeal hiding for hours while terrorists overtook his kibbutz is captivating. His fathers heroic mission to rescue them, woven together with the storied and bloodied history of the kibbutz, makes for a remarkable read.
-- Bianna Golodryga, Anchor and Senior Global Affairs Analyst, CNN
Amir Tibon survived the October 7th Hamas attack on his kibbutz thanks to his father, who jumped in a car, drove south from Tel Aviv dodging rockets and bullets and pulled off a daring rescue of Amir and his young family. As a newspaper journalist, Amir brings a reporters eye to this vivid, truthful, and at times emotional account not only of the fear and terror of that day, but also of life along the Israeli border with Gaza, and of the struggle between the Jews and Palestinians. The Gates of Gaza is both sweeping and deeply personal; it is grand and granular, historic and suspenseful, compassionate and wise.
-- Lesley Stahl, correspondent, 60 Minutes
Praise for The Last Palestinian:
The Last Palestinian is a gripping story, compellingly told. It is required reading for anybody who wants to understand the crisis of the Palestinian national movement and the failure of the peace process.
-- Walter Russell Mead, Distinguished Scholar at Hudson Institute and author of
Special ProvidencePraise for The Last Palestinian:
This is a serious political biography of a man whose life embodies the hopes, challenges, struggles, and failures of the Palestinian national struggle. An important account for anyone wishing to understand the history, evolution, and politics of Palestinian peacemaking.
-- Robert Danin, Council on Foreign Relations and Harvard Kennedy School, former Head of the Office of the Quartet Representative, Jerusalem
Praise for The Last Palestinian:
This important and fair-minded book adds an important, and badly needed, element to the puzzle of contemporary Palestinian domestic politics. It should be read carefully by everyone who wants to understand the current status of IsraeliPalestinian dynamics and the broader political landscape in the Middle East.
-- Hussein Ibish, senior resident scholar, Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington, DC
Praise for The Last Palestinian:
The Last Palestinian is an essential read, for it tells the story of a complex personality opposed to violence, doggedly in favour of the two-state solution, intent to lead but with a shrinking following in pursuit of a vision of an independent Palestine that has thus far eluded him. The authors have assembled a textured picture of the man, his strengths and shortcomings, who at age eighty-two continues to lead the Palestinians, albeit in a more authoritarian direction and toward a goal of independence that appears more remote than ever.
-- Daniel Kurtzer, Princeton University, former US ambassador to Egypt and Israel
Praise for The Last Palestinian:
This is the well-told tale sad, but immensely consequential of how Mahmoud Abbas declined from peacemaker to autocrat and took the hopes of Palestinians down with him. Everyone interested in Middle East peace needs to know this story.
-- Elliott Abrams, Senior Fellow, Council on Foreign Relations, and former US Deputy National Security Advisor
