Product Description
This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

Product Description
In 1988, at the age of 20, Souha Bechara attempted to assassinate General Lahad, chief of militia in charge of Israeli-occupied Southern Lebanon. In Resistante, she details her further involvement as a young secular Orthodox Christian left rebel in the movement to free her country from occupying military forces — and the subsequent punishment and incarceration she experienced. The author speaks movingly of how her childhood in a war-torn country shaped her political belief system as an adult and offers an engaging personal look at the Middle Eastern conflict. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

An inspiration
Souha's dedication to the resistance, even through 10 years in Khiam Detention Center, is truly inspirational.
Her memoir is a gift to understanding the resistance, particularly from a woman's point of view.
Souha's writing transports you to Khiam Detention Center, making you feel like you too are trapped in a 3x3 cell.
Besides learning about Khiam Detention Center, Souha's memoir also provides a very clear portrayal of the Lebanese Civil War and Israeli Occupation of Southern Lebanon and Lebanese cooperatives.
This book has the best to offer: an insightful view into the secret realities of war and personal narration by a unique and extrordinary revolutionary.

Inspirational and informative.
Soha Bechara's story, "Resistance: My Life for Lebanon" is a fascinating account of a young girl's life of war and brutal imprisonment in Lebanon.

Soha was born in 1967 in Deir Mimas, a village in South Lebanon. Growing up, she was an energetic, enthusiastic and cheerful girl - a "lover of life", as she describes. Life was beautiful for the Becharas in her childhood years - merry family gatherings, extravagant parties,and the enjoyment of the picturesque country side of Deir Mimas. However, the commencement of the civil war in 1975 transformed such a gifted life into years of madness and bloodshed.

Her father Fawaz was a loyal and steadfast member of the Lebanese Communist Party. Soha adopted his philosophies on politics and nationalism. Throughout the frenzy of the civil war, with the Muslims and Christians clashing, something had become clear to her: "Lebanon had only one real enemy, one occupying power: the state of Israel. To my mind, the civil war was just a consequence of this situation". In 1982, she decided to actively join the resistance against Israel.

At first, Soha helped with intelligence gathering and logistics support.In 1986, she was assigned the mission of assassinating Antoine Lahad, head of the South Lebanon Army - the collaborators of Israel and traitors of Lebanon. She managed to win the trust of Lahad and Lahad's wife, Minerva, by posing as her aerobics instructor. On the night of the operation, while having coffee at the Lahad house, Soha took her handgun from her purse and shot Lahad twice in the chest. She was arrested and taken to Khiam prison, Israel's illegal torture den of resistance fighters in South Lebanon. There she spent 10 years of her life, six in solitary confinement.

"Resistance: My Life for Lebanon" is an interesting, memorable book that certainly puts things into perspective. It simplifies the political issues of Lebanon during the 80s - the issues were not complex; the overwhelming problem was Israel. For a person new to Lebanon's political history over the last 30 years, I think the book provides a good overview of the events that unfolded, and why.

I would have liked to read more about Soha's emotions while in Khiam, and especially after being released. Did her experience change her as a person? What was her opinion of the Lebanon Israel conflict after Khiam? Is she still proud of what she did? I certainly am, and I am sure many, many Lebanese today feel the same.

I strongly recommend this book - it's an amazing, inspirational story that will keep you turning the page in anticipation.

[...]

An important book
This is an important work for anyone who wants to look into the impact of war and occupation.This first person account of an act of resistance and the aftermath is a powerful work that forces the reader to see things from the perspective of the innocent people who are forced by circumstances into decisions that are incomprehensible for those who will never be faced with war.

Whether one considers the author a criminal/terrorist or a resistance fighter her story is compelling and relevant.Her account details her progression from a normal Lebanese girl going to school and living with her family into a politically radicalized woman willing to risk her life and her freedom to strike a blow against the enemy of her country and her people.Her account humanized those who we too often dismiss as "terrorists".It made me realize that those who commit these violent acts are not mindless fanatics, but real people with family's and friends and life that they love.These are people who have been driven to the brink of hopelessness to the point where they feel their only recourse is to lash out against those they perceive as the protagonists of their torment.

It is important to understand what drives a person to these actions, and to realize that military actions affect real people.Benign terms like precision bombing and collateral damage belie the horrific consequences for those who see and feel the real impact of what these words really represent.Criminal or honorable, resistance fighter her story is one that represents a thousand similar stories.

The proof is in the pudding!
In the end, Soha puts love of her country and nationalism as the primary motivating factor behind her actions. This is a very interesting read in light of present day events, which support both sides of the argument of Israel as occupier versus Israel as defender. Lebanon is a small country divided by religion, ideology and perhaps even race. As the middle east connection to the mediteranean and Europe it is also highly desirable territory. Read in light of present day events, this will make you think!

riveting, and yet missing essential element
Having grown up in the war in Beirut I was particularly fascinated reading about Soha Bechara's experiences, in part because they were so utterly different from mine--though very traumatized by the war, I was nevertheless sheltered in that I did not participate in it. I think this book is a powerful and compelling evocation of life in war and the process of transforming a young, idealistic pacifist into a murderer. (I use the word murderer because as much as I myself hated the SLA, the occupation, all of it, I cannot bring myself to call shooting a man point blank in the chest after months of planning, anything other than murder, no matter the cause.) This is where for me the book is missing something essential, and that is self-reflection--she describes the events of her life and evokes the difficulty and confusion of entering this violent world, but she does not look back from her new vantage as someone living in Paris and writing a book. Does she still rue limiting herself to only 2 bullets? Does she believe her operation made a difference, and why? Does she believe it wouldn't make a difference? Does she have any regret, or does she still feel as passionately as she did at 16, when she was striving so hard to join the resistance? I was left wondering who she is now. As someone who abhors violence as much as she claims to throughout the book, I needed to hear about how she reconciles that stance with what she did and even more particularly what was done to her--the accounts of her torture are not followed by any reflection on its effect, and one gets the impression she went in and came out the exact same person, which I find impossible to believe. I needed to understand how she reconciles everything she did and all that happened now, in the present, in her entirely different life, for the book to feel complete.

That is not at all to say I wouldn't recommend this book; I read it in one sitting, riveted.
... Read more

Product Description
With the Israeli-Palestinian crisis reaching wartime levels, where is the latest confrontation between these two old foes leading? Robert Fisk’s explosive Pity the Nation recounts Sharon and Arafat’s first deadly encounter in Lebanon in the early 1980s and explains why the Israel–Palestine relationship seems so intractable. A remarkable combination of war reporting and analysis by an author who has witnessed the carnage of Beirut for twenty-five years, Fisk, the first journalist to whom bin Laden announced his jihad against the U.S., is one of the world's most fearless and honored foreign correspondents. He spares no one in this saga of the civil war and subsequent Israeli invasion: the PLO, whose thuggish behavior alienated most Lebanese; the various Lebanese factions, whose appalling brutality spared no one; the Syrians, who supported first the Christians and then the Muslims in their attempt to control Lebanon; and the Israelis, who tried to install their own puppets and, with their 1982 invasion, committed massive war crimes of their own. It includes a moving finale that recounts the travails of Fisk’s friend Terry Anderson who was kidnapped by Hezbollah and spent 2,454 days in captivity. Fully updated to include the Israeli withdrawl from south Lebanon and Ariel Sharon's electoral victory over Ehud Barak, this edition has sixty pages of new material and a new preface. "Robert Fisk’s enormous book about Lebanon’s desperate travails is one of the most distinguished in recent times."—Edward Said ... Read more

Customer Reviews (37)

Frustrating book ends in 1990
Robert Fisk's book on Lebanon ends in 1990, still in the midst of war, and then one has to sift through his columns and other books for hints on what happened to the place. Fisk also introduces the fascinating character, Druze leader Walid Jumblatt, the warlord who gives the best parties in Beirut, and thereafter we see bits and pieces of Jumblatt emerging in Fisk's columns, sometimes called the most cynical politician on earth and other times almost treated as a hero.It's almost as if Fisk lost interest in Lebanon after describing fifteen years of war. Even so, this by far is Fisk at his best.Don't buy it in paperback -- it will fall apart because you'll be re-reading it.Spend the little extra on the hard cover.

Great book
Being Lebanese and impartial towards the politics in Lebanon, I'm very interested to read about the country. for the last 30 years I've read lots of articles, books, documentaries and everything that I can get about Lebanon...

This book ranks at the top of my favorites, for it correctly details events and situations that I've experienced firsthand. None of the militias who fought during the war represented their entire community, they just ruled by force. Almost all of them collaborated with foreigners against their fellow countrymen. But there were the minorities, hijacking the destiny of the silent majority.

For readers who never lived in Lebanon, and I mean physically lived there and experienced the society, not just read about the country or watched biased reports, it's hard for them to comprehend and fully appreciate the content of the book and the style written. I never wanted to let it off my hands till I'm finished with it. I patiently waited for every spare moment I have a chance to read and went back to it.

I believe Mr. Fisk was unbiased, and reported what he lived thru. Being a reporter gives him more opportunity to watch the events first hand, more than the ordinary locals can. Living there for manyyears, andinteracting with the society gives him the facts and advantage over reporters who were there on a swing or for just a brief stop to report an event....

if you're interested in learning about the Lebanese conflict this book is a must read

Very Happy!
Product was meticulously wrapped, arriving in pristine condition in a timely manner.Excellent service.

Pity the nation
Robert Fisk is renowned as one of the world's best foreign correspondents today, in particular on Middle Eastern issues. He has lived in Lebanon for a long time, and in "Pity the Nation" he has written the second of his magisterial chronicles which set out to describe and explain the devastation and strife in the region of the last decades. (The other one is The Great War for Civilisation: The Conquest of the Middle East.) The title is based on a poem by Khalil Gibran, which describes wonderfully well the degeneration of the great states and civilizations of that area under the pressures of imperialism, religious sectarianism and poverty. Pity the nation that acclaims the bully as a hero, and that deems the glittering conqueror bountiful...

Fisk's narrative is about the three great successive wars that have struck Lebanon like biblical plagues in the past period: The first civil war, the Israeli invasion of Lebanon, and the second civil war. All of these followed each other in rapid succession as the multireligious and multicultural state of Lebanon tore itself to shreds, destroyed its unity and its dignity, and in the end barely left one stone standing on the other in what had been a relatively developed and cosmopolitan part of the Middle East. Fisk applies the stylistic techniques and attitude that make his other works so impressive as well: his refusal to take sides, his utter lack of excusing cruelties and violence as being justified by the ends, his dry observing style which allows his indignance to come forth when truly deserved all the stronger, and his careful attitude towards his own position in the whole as a foreigner and a journalist. The people of Lebanon and their destruction of each other and their country are central to the story, not the opinions or ego of Western journalists and the foreign desks of newspapers, as is so often the case with 'popular' reporting by foreign correspondents. This means necessarily that the focus is in particular on the warring parties, and that as a result other groups, whether simply nonbelligerents or (say) the Armenian diaspora in Lebanon, get less attention. But Fisk's greatest asset, his humanity including his refusal to be cynical, allow the damage done to the civilian population to be ever present in the background as the real tragedy, regardless of who wins or loses the political battle.

Like Fisk's other works, this is not for the faint of heart: he describes a great amount of cruelty, violence and destruction with very little hope or improvement in sight at any point of the book, and pulls no punches. Whether it be the massacres at Sabra and Chatila or the wars between Druze and Falangists, or the many bombardments of Beirut, Fisk holds nothing back and limbs fly about. Yet he never indulges the violence or enjoys it: he consistently maintains a clear perspective, showing the reader the true meaning of the wars and struggles that opportunistic politicians and religious sectarians unleash on the world when they declare that one simply needs to defeat the enemy and then all the good things will happen. He clearly has very little sympathy for the Israeli invasion of Lebanon and perhaps a deal more for the Palestinian perspective, and this has been controversial. But it is nonetheless fully justified by the course of events since 1947, as long as one does not forget that Palestinian 'leaders' are just strongmen and crooks too for the most part, something many pro-Palestinian authors are inclined to neglect, but which Fisk does not. This is yet another indication of how (relatively) trustworthy and balanced his perspective on events tends to be. That he has a tendency to risk his life by staying in dangerous areas to report, without exaggerating his own heroism in the process, just adds to this.

The book is of course very long and detailed, and some people may find it getting repetitive over time. The whole basically reads as neverending hatred and war, and this can wear out even the most inveterate fan of international politics, as long as she still has a working conscience. Nonetheless, it is highly worth it. There is no better history of the Lebanese wars, and a great number of people and organisations mentioned in it are still relevant and affecting events today, often even posthumously. The book ends around 1990, and that makes it somewhat dated of necessity, but the compromise in Lebanon is led by many of the sons and followers of the leaders in this book, and it is undermined by great instability and a range of assassinations. If in the future war breaks out there again, which is not inconceivable at all, many people will look for a guide, and should find it in this book. A thorough index of names will help dispel some of the difficulty with remembering all the different parties and individuals, but it helps while reading to try and keep a list of who belongs to whom and which alliances exist - these shift easily in the dust of the Levant.

Best book on Lebanon
In my humble opinion, this is the best of a number of good books written about Lebanon.If you are only going to read one book about the war-torn country, I recommend Fisk's brilliant work.The author's amazing research and personal experiences put him in the very heart of the matter.I know a lot of reviewers say, "this book should be required reading," but in this case, it is true.To truly understand Lebanon, one must read PITY THE NATION. Mayada, Daughter of Iraq: One Woman's Survival Under Saddam Hussein ... Read more

Product Description
This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

Product Description
Lost among war statistics and battle lines is the very real tragedy of simple people trying to survive in wretched conditions-old people and children dodging bullets, diving for cover from exploding shells, running away from the debris of human body parts that threaten to engulf them. No Country but War gives us detailed and poignant descriptions of being caught in the brutal violence and chaos of the Lebanese Civil War-from saving a dying child whose parents couldn't get medical assistance to desperately talking his own way out of an execution, after being forced to his knees with a gun at his head. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Up close and personal
Mike Dawahare gives us a personal, riveting view of the "civil" war in Lebanon, from a reporter's close up view. Although only in country for six months, you get the feeling that his views and experiences would have accurately represented the whole fifteen years of that conflict. The sense that the futility would have been repeated over and over for the whole period is eminently obvious. There are no innocent parties to this conflict and Dawahare's reportage makes clear that the fog of war can blur the consciousness of any rational observer. A compelling read by any standard. ... Read more

Product Description
A brilliant history of the land into which more historical and cultural events were croweded than perhaps into any area of equal size. For Syria has either invented or transmitted to mankind such benefits as monotheistic religion, philosophy, law, trade, agriculture, and our allphabet. ... Read more

Product Description
Lebanese leaders of all persuasions faced the constant fear of being swallowed into an Arab-Muslim superstate after the union of Syria and Egypt in 1958. Lebanese-Egyptian relations during the period 1952-70 passed through several phases but the main theme was uneasy co-operation, with Lebanon holding on to an independent role with the strong support of the US before Lebanese politics became engulfed in civil war in the 1970s. ... Read more

Product Description
This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

book review
This is a wonderful book for anyone who ever lived in Lebanon, Indiana.I bought it for my father's 85th birthday and he was thrilled with it!So many good memories for him. ... Read more

Product Description
This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

Product Description
This Elibron Classics book is a facsimile reprint of a 1860 edition by Thomas Cautley Newby, London. ... Read more

Product Description
This Elibron Classics book is a facsimile reprint of a 1860 edition by Thomas Cautley Newby, London. ... Read more

Product Description
This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more