A Very Short History of Gaza

A vital history of Gaza from Antiquity to the present—defying Israel's attempts to erase its heritage

Today Gaza lies in ruins after a genocide perpetrated before our eyes. Over 80% of its buildings have been destroyed, and its people have suffered the worst horrors imaginable. For over twenty years it has been an open-air prison. But once Gaza was an integral part of the Arab and Eastern Mediterranean world, where merchants traded their goods, and intellectual and religious life flourished, across all three Abrahamic faiths. Empires as diverse as the Persians, Romans, Mamluks, and Ottomans vied to control it—and its silks, fruits, and wines were renowned. Ilan Pappe tells the story of Gaza from Roman rule to the present, revealing the indomitable spirit of Gaza's people and the possibility for a more just future in a free Palestine.