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15/10/2017

BBC Radio 4 - My Father's Israel

How a bitter dispute over Israel's future in 1967 split a country and divided a family.

Documentary. In 1967, a bitter dispute over Israel's future split a country, and divided a family. Rami Tzabar discovers his father's role in a moment that changed everything.

How a bitter dispute over Israel's future split a country and divided a family. In June 1967, Israel had just won the Six Day War, defeating the armies of Egypt, Jordan and Syria, and occupying much new territory. Israelis sensed a transformation in their country's destiny. Most were euphoric. A few were fearful. Two declarations drawn up in neighbouring Tel Aviv cafes and published on the same day symbolised this bitter divide.

One, now seen as hugely significant in shaping Israeli history, declared that 'The Land of Israel is now in the hands of the Jewish people'. It was signed by more than fifty members of the country's leading cultural and political elites. It encouraged the wave of settlements that would arise in the territories which Israel had recently occupied. The other declaration, concocted by two friends over an espresso, warned that the Israeli victory was a 'fateful' moment, and that holding onto occupied territories 'will make us a nation of murderers and murdered'. It was signed by just 12 people.

These heretical views, published in a leading daily newspaper, prompted intense criticism and its signatories were called traitors to the Zionist cause. Some received threats of violence, amongst them Shimon Tzabar, who was one of the authors. In this programme, his son Rami explores what this moment of dramatic change meant for Israel, and for his family. He travels to Tel Aviv and talks to those involved in making the two declarations, as they recall the extraordinary atmosphere surrounding them. 

This is also a personal story, as Rami discovers the consequences of his father's passionate actions. After ostracism in Israel, his father went into exile in London (where Rami was born), and continued his campaigns with weapons of art, satire and unshakeable faith in his cause. The cost for the family was high. 

Arguments still rage today about Israel's actions and destiny - an argument within Israeli society, within the international community and among individuals. This programme reveals, in one dramatic story, the roots of that argument, and how it reverberated so strongly across a family's life. 

Producers: Rami Tzabar and Chris Bowlby
Editor: Hugh Levinson.

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