A review by strickvl
The Only Language They Understand: Forcing Compromise in Israel and Palestine by Nathan Thrall

3.0

A collection of articles from recent years. Thrall is an analyst associated with the International Crisis Group and the New York Review of Books. If you've followed his work, you'll be familiar with these pieces. The headliner article opens the volume outlining an argument that suggests force (from any/all parties, including those external to the conflict) is actually far more efficient as a way of achieving results. The argument was intriguing, though I don't really know enough to be able to judge the veracity of what he's suggesting. Certainly, it was a reminder to decouple moral claims from what is practically possible. Thrall comes off as a sensitive analyst in this book, sparing nobody -- least of all [a:Ari Shavit|6459199|Ari Shavit|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png] and his book [b:My Promised Land: The Triumph and Tragedy of Israel|15798334|My Promised Land The Triumph and Tragedy of Israel|Ari Shavit|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1365463707s/15798334.jpg|22435242] -- in the various pieces that follow.