Customer Reviews

Hezbollah

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

IN THIS HIGHLY READABLE BOOK,AUTHOR HALA JABER GOES BEHIND THE VEIL OF HEZBOLLAH TO TELL THE READER THAT NOT ALL WE READ IN THE WEST IS QUITE TRUE ABOUT THIS GROUP.HOSTAGES,SUICIDE BOMBERS ETC..ITS ALL IN HERE BUT SO ARE THE SCHOOLS,HOSPITALS AND SOCIAL STRUCTURE THAT THE GROUP HAS BUILT UP OVER THE YEARS.SHE EXPLAINS CLEARLY AND OBJECTIVELY WHY ISRAEL,WHICH OCCUPIES 10% OF LEBANESE LAND,HAVE TAKEN MANY OF THEIR YOUNG SOLDIERS HOME IN BODY BAGS.I WOULD HOPE THAT THIS BOOK IS READ BY FUTURE PRESIDENTS AND PRIME MINISTERS ASWELL AS THEIR INTELLIGENCE DEPARTMENTS.VERY ENLIGHTENING!

Reading hezbollah: born with a vengeance by H.Jaber gave me a good introduction to the history of such an organization. It made me think differently taking into consideration the study Jaber undertook into the dark corridors of Hezbollah when no one tried to go deep into their beliefs.

Nowadays, with media coverage and the current affairs in the region, the hezbollah movement became more known and more people got to discover their intentions and why they had to fight for their rights in the way they did. I always believed they were freedom fighters, I could understand how someone is fighting for his own land, it is theirs and Israel was occupying it. Anyone who thinks that hezbollah is only labelled as a terrorist movement, definitely never felt the imprisonment in his own house and land....

Imagine you can't have an orange from your garden that you yourself planted but not allowed to have a bite because your occupier is benefiting. The rise of Hezbollah as clarified by Hala Jaber gives different angles to how you can look at them, but at the same time she puts you on her track of thoughts to be able to see what she saw and what she endured.

Maybe being a Lebanese made her more vulnerable to criticism from many other people who think that hezbollah are mass murderers, terrorists, fanatics and ignorant militias. That is just wrong and one can't just draw a line under such recognition just because one's background influences such beliefs.

what I really respect about Jaber, is her writing her research in English just to make it possible for a western audience to take a glimpse at a part of the world she wanted to shed the lights on.

A good critique is a criticism that tries to show the book in its literary worth and not based on the reader subjective points of views. It is ok for the reader to not agree with Jaber sometimes but in a constructive way not just for the sake of destroying this piece of work...

Wasn't exactly what I was hoping to read as the book was more into the history of Hezbollah rather than a description of the successful tactics that have paralysed the Israeli Army. However, it does uncover the most important element in Hezbollah's success, which made it vastly superior to any other Arab Army, and it can be summarised into one word "Motivation". The book kicked off with a story of a young boy named Mohammed, watching a video every evening, of a suicide bomber, crashing into a convoy of Israeli soldiers. The suicide bomber is his father................

As a student with a few cents to hand,i read this book at a friends house.i think jaber is both informative and constructive in her approach to the subject.i knew little of this subject but have made it my business to find out more.please bring this out in paper back so we poor students can buy our own copy!

I certainly agree with the others who have written reviews for this book in that it is very pro-Hezbollah / sympathetic to Hezbollah. The underlying theme of this book seems to be that Israel brought this upon themselves. Even though the book may be skewed toward the Hezbollah perspective, I still think it is an important book to read for anyone who is trying to learn more about the Middle East and the Arab-Israeli conflict in order to be familiar with the different perspectives of the conflict. One quick comment on the writing style: I thought the book was well written and easy to read. It flowed pretty smoothly and I found it to be a page-turner (which is a pleasant surprise in comparison to some of the other books I have been assigned to read for class).

A good book by all means. The author doesn't talk about the atrocities committed by israel until the last chapter, but all the chapters are worth reading. You will learn: why Hezbollah was created, what it does (military is just a small part), how it functions, how it is structured, and why it has so many supporters. You should definitely read this if you don't know much about the organization, but I'm also sure that knowledgeable readers will find some new details. Good book.

I read Ms Jaber's book, and was so inspired by it I visited South Lebanon. Ms Jaber is obviously not an Islamist, but her unbiased and contextual approach presents a picture, which many of Hezbullah admirers would recognise. She shows the Quranic roots of the movement by quoting the Holy Scripture at each chapter head. Most importantly she describes the comprehensive nature of the Party's work, and not just it's military aspects. She allows the Hezbullahi and other players in the drama to speak for themselves, yet is not afraid to form an opinion about some of the controversial aspects of recent Lebanese history.

For anyone who wants to know how a radical Islamic programme can work within a multi-cultural society this book is a must. [133 words]

This short work is a brief history of the rise, methods and goals of the Lebanese Shi'ite terror group/political party Hezbollah (lit. "the party of God"). At only 200 pages, journalist Hala Jaber's monograph should be an easy read, but it jumps around chronologically, so some basic background in Middle Eastern history and religion would be very helpful. Because of the author's access to primary sources in the form of rare interviews, I recommend the book to specialists, as well as students or even casual readers, but preferably readers with a healthy dose of skepticism.

1. The book is completely one-sided in favor of Hezbollah. It betrays no indication whatever that Jaber interviewed any Israeli source. She expresses no sympathy for Israel's government or citizens. She only manages to use words like "fringe extremists" (p. 59), "massacred in cold blood" (p. 115), or "ruthlessness" (p. 123) about Israel, and never in regards to any Lebanese group. Considering that Hezbollah invented suicide bombing, Jaber's inability to even hint at disapproval is disconcerting. None of that changes the basic facts -- and in many cases, Israel's actions are clearly horrific -- but the point is that the book cannot reasonably be read as a dispassionate, objective account. It is propaganda.

2. In addition to Hezbollah's military methods, Jaber is unrealistically credulous of Hezbollah's political aims. She apparently accepts at face value Hezbollah's claim that its charitable projects come without strings attached. But she reluctantly admits that monthly, personal visits by Hezbollah representatives to beneficiaries allows for significant control (p 160), and it is telling that non-Shi'ites are unwilling to take Hezbollah charity because they are worried about becoming indebted to the group (p. 148).

3. History has proven Jaber wrong on at least one point. When the book was published in 1997, she asserted (contrary to all the evidence) that "Hezbollah knows that its military resistance would be terminated once Israel withdraws from South Lebanon" (p. 208). But when Israel unilaterally withdrew in 2000, Hezbollah assassinated SLA leaders and continued attacks and kidnappings against Israel, sparking the 2008 Israeli invasion.

4. The book is chronologically disjointed as a result of Jaber's lack of focus. The reality is that Hezbollah is so secretive that Jaber doesn't have enough material for a full book (at least, not without providing more detail on Hazbollah's attacks, which she won't do). So she pads the text heavily. Chapter 1 is a general treatment of Lebanese conflict and Shi'ite resistance. Chapter 2 deals more directly with Hezbollah from 1982, but repeats the Hezbollah material in Chapter 1. Chapter 3 discusses Hezbollah's development and use of suicide bombers, which again takes us back to 1982. Chapter 4 discusses the Iranian revolution, later exported to Lebanon via Hezbollah; again we move back in time, to 1979. The chapter is not improved by an extensive, meandering discussion of kidnappings in the context of the Lebanese Civil War. Chapter 5 concerns Hezbollah's humanitarian projects - this is the only chapter that really works well as a separate, non-chronological treatement. Chapter 6 examines in some detail the 1996 "Operation Grapes of Wrath," in which Israel aggressively targeted Hezbollah but failed to accomplish its goals, and in the process strengthened Hezbollah's hand.

Jaber's narrative would have benefitted significantly from a more coherent structure.

5. In spite of the foregoing criticisms, the book is not useless. Jaber clearly has good access to Hezbollah sources, so she provides some raw material for a more balanced analysis. She never assumes too much previous knowledge on the part of the reader, so the book is accessible.

NOTE: If you find my review unhelpful, please tell me why in a comment.

HEZBOLLAH has been synonymous with terror for decade, but few books examine its reputation, evolution, and development. This book is an essential recommendation for any college-level or specialty collection strong in Muslim history and culture: it surveys the party's ties to Iran, its members, and its involvement in Islam and not only provides a history, but interviews hostage takers and victims alike to shed light on philosophy, action, and culture. Essential for any who would study the region's past, present and possible futures.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

Hala Jaber's "Hezbollah: Born with Vengence" starts out ok. But by mid-way through the book it turns into an endless one-sided emotional rant against Israel. I am not Jewish, nor do I have much sympathy for Israel's invasion of Lebanon; however, Israel had its reasons and I don't think Jaber did a very good job of trying to put the conflict in S. Lebanon in perspective. Jaber offers endless highly graphic portrayals of Israeli brutality--and undoubtedly Israel is guilty of such abuses. Yet, she does not provide any opposing and balanced look of the brutality perpetrated by Hezbollah, nor does she equally scrutinize Syria's occupation of N. Lebanon. Is not Syria's occupation of this country just as vile (Israel is gone, while Syria is still in Lebanon with 35,000 troos), or is such venom only reserved for Israel? I did learn about Hezbollah's intricate and expansive social welfare net. Still, it is too bad that Jaber could not have at least tried to stray away from such emotionalism and provided something more of an objective view. I made it to page 189--thereafter it just became one bleeding heart example of alleged Israeli atrocities after another. To portray Hezbollah as the valiant freedom fighters and Israel as the vile and heartless occupier is far to simplistic--one might even suggest intellectually lazy. If you are a pro-Palestian, pro-Hezbollah fan--this book sings to the choir. However, if your trying to learn about and objectively place Hezbollah within a very complicated conflict,this book is not for you.