#whatireadovershabbat Bernard-Henri Lévy, Israel Alone, trans. Steven B. Kennedy (Wicked Son, 2024)
When you write about an ongoing war, writing is less an art than an action. Lévy, whose first book documented Bangladesh's War of Independence, has reported on wars his entire career. He knows that if he wants to have an impact on the outcome, convince others to aid or intervene, he must act quickly. He knows, too, that an informed report to the outside world can have an impact.
Lévy finished the French version of this book in late February 2024, less than five months into the war and the hostages’ captivity. It was published in March; the English translation in June. The speed of writing reflects the urgency of his mission: to frame—in a larger historical picture than news media and TikTok can offer—October 7th, the war, the plight of the hostages, and the culpability of Hamas for the death of so many Gazans. And to do so before the world banishes the memory of what happened 400 days ago.
October 7th was an Event. According to Lévy, and the underappreciated German philosopher Reiner Schürmann, an Event opens a new phase of history, one that doesn't follow from what came before. The unprecedented nature of what was done lies not solely in the attack itself, the brazenness of which, as much as the barbarity, distinguishes it from crimes of recent memory, but also in its uptake. Antisemitism returned as a geopolitical force. We have been launched as a result into a shrouded future, yet one eerily reminiscent of the past.
Lévy's sad claim is that Israel stands alone against this radical evil. It doesn't have to stand alone, and in fact it shouldn't, considering that the consequences of losing this war will ramify across the world. Luckily for the rest of us, Israel stands alone but dauntless, sunk in carnage yet steadfast against barbarism, even against the reactionaries in its midst, a beacon despite them and despite the lies about Israel's wartime conduct spread by the most ill-formed, malicious, and tyrannical actors. This book is a plea to the world to heed Israel's example.
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