Israel's complex first PM

Book review of A STATE AT ANY COST: The Life of David Ben-Gurion

On the eve of the establishment of the state of Israel, David Ben-Gurion, who had worked tirelessly toward this goal, suddenly sought to postpone independence. He knew neighbouring Arab countries were poised to invade and he feared his underground army wasn’t prepared to fight; so, at a nighttime meeting with Lord Chancellor Sir William Jowitt, Ben-Gurion proposed that the British remain in charge of Palestine for another five to 10 years while working to increase Jewish immigration. Nothing came of this proposal and, on November 29, 1947, the United Nations voted to partition Palestine into Arab and Jewish states. Full-scale