FEATURED JOBS
Comments (0)Seen as an incident involving the tragic murder of a 16-year-old Jewish activist, David Cesarani provides a broader perspective of Palestine leading up to the birth of Israel.
Major Farran, a decorated British army officer on routine patrol, came upon young Alexander Rubowitz. Farran took him into custody and drove to a secluded location outside of Jerusalem to “interrogate” him. During questioning, he killed the boy. Whether or not the murder was intentional, his cover-up of the incident clearly was.
By weaving in the ensuing investigation, court martial and the larger struggle for a Jewish state, Mr. Cesarani creates a tightly knit yarn, laced with names like Menachem Begin, Yitzhak Shamir and British Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery.
However, when writing about history, context is everything. Where Mr. Cesarani stumbles is in not clearly making the distinction when calling the Jews of Palestine “terrorists.” Is it his perspective that the Jews were terrorists? He never says.
Barring semantics, the bombing of the Rome Embassy makes clear the Jews, rebelling against British occupancy, consistently targeted government buildings and not civilians. He even describes how the Jews “worked out when an explosion would wreak maximum havoc while causing minimum loss of life.” Major Farran’s story marks the start of a continuing battle tracing Israel’s long struggle with public opinion and of opposing and unsolvable perspectives.
On the one hand, Major Farran is exonerated and lives to tell his story, moving to Canada and becoming a politician. Yet, in an act of revenge, there is a toll exacted on him. One can only conclude, while the players have changed, the struggle for justice and vindication continues.