The State of Israel vs. the Jews

by Sylvain Cypel, William Rodarmor (Translator)

From an award-winning journalist, a perceptive study of how Israel’s actions, which run counter to the traditional historical values of Judaism, are putting Jewish people worldwide in an increasingly untenable position.

More than a decade ago, the historian Tony Judt considered whether the behavior of Israel was becoming not only “bad for Israel itself” but also, on a wider scale, “bad for the Jews.” Under the leadership of Benjamin Netanyahu, this issue has grown ever more urgent. In The State of Israel vs. the Jews, veteran journalist Sylvain Cypel addresses it in depth, exploring Israel’s rightward shift on the international scene and with regard to the diaspora.

Cypel reviews the little-known details of the military occupation of Palestinian territory, the mindset of ethnic superiority that reigns throughout an Israeli “colonial camp” that is largely in the majority, and the adoption of new laws, the most serious of which establishes two-tier citizenship between Jews and non-Jews. He shows how Israel has aligned itself with authoritarian regimes and adopted the practices of a security state, including the use of technologies such as the software that enabled the tracking and, ultimately, the assassination of Saudi Arabian journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Lastly, The State of Israel vs. the Jews examines the impact of Israel’s evolution in recent years on the two main communities of the Jewish diaspora, in France and the United States, considering how and why public figures in each differ in their approaches.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Politics, Middle East, Israel, Audiobook, France

352 pages, Hardcover

First published September 28, 2021

Reviews

[literaryelise · Rating 5 out of 5]

If someone learns more about the treatment of Palestinians by the Israeli government (I’m talking facts here, not propaganda) and still does not support the movement to ensure the rights and self determination of the Palestinian people, then they are racist. Plain and simple. Because how could someone come to understand the dahiya doctrine, the jewish-nation state law, settlements in the west bank, the idf policy of “making your presence felt,” Kahanism, the Sabra and Shantila massacre (I could continue because there are endless examples) and come to the conclusion that Israel is not a supremacist state hell bent on the annihilation of Palestinians? I feel so much shame knowing I live in a country that has time and time again professed it’s unequivocal support for Israel and provided it with massive amounts of military funding.

Great book, very accessible, lots of good introductory info and context too if you aren’t very familiar with the details of the conflict. Highly recommend.

[Michael Perkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Israel is a darkness to all nations"

-Israeli historian

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Update....

https://www.theguardian.com/world/202...

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This book filled in a lot of gaps for me. Very informative...........and disturbing.

The report published by B’Tselem, a week before Biden’s inauguration, stands as a milestone in the history of Israel. For the first time, a major Israeli NGO stated that the entire territory under Israeli authority, “between the Mediterranean and the Jordan,” is being governed by “apartheid,” described in this case as a “regime of Jewish supremacy.”

What makes it apartheid? Because, says the report, “Israel accords Palestinians a different package of rights in every one of the units [where they live] all of which are inferior compared to the rights afforded to Jewish citizens.”

“It's a regime that uses laws, practices and organized violence to cement the supremacy of one group over another as an apartheid regime.”

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https://www.theguardian.com/books/202...

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The Tal Shiar

https://www.amazon.com/Gatekeepers-Yu...

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This just in....

https://www.theguardian.com/world/202...

[Canyen Heimuli · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars ⭐️ A really informative read with excellent descriptions and normative arguments.

From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free 🇵🇸

[Wessal Al-Zalabany · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5
Easy to follow and informative! Recommend if you want to explore the intricate relationship between the settler colonial state of Israel and Jewish identity.

[Michael Vela · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating and terrifying story of Israeli polices and mentality in the 21st century. From open racism to ethno-politics and laws the author describes as mirroring Nazism, to the now unabashed desire to colonize all of Palestine among many in Israeli politics and society. The Nakba, once a taboo in Israel is now being openly embraced along with calls for a sequel.
Also interesting was the chapters on Israel’s anti-black racism towards African migrants, it’s links with other Far right regimes, and it’s wide use and sale of Cybersurvialawce technologies to monitor not only Palestinians, but it’s own citizens with “traitors views”

[Kat V · Rating 4 out of 5]

Obviously biased, but these are important stories that need to be told. 4 stars

[Scott Thompson · Rating 1 out of 5]

The Washington Post review https://www.washingtonpost.com/outloo... is completely accurate. I thought I was crazy reading this book and wasn't sure if it was about the Jewish state or how much the author hates Donald Trump. A lengthy diatribe of how the Jewish nation is shooting itself in the foot by being mean to other people. Maybe they are just tired of getting the crap kicked out of them everywhere they turn. The book was clearly written by a bigot and I think he thought by pointing the racism finger enough times nobody would catch on who the real hater is.

[Taylor G · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25/5

Audiobook is currently in Audible Plus catalog for free. Narrator is okay at increased speeds.

Very informative. Written by a journalist who lived in Israel for 12 years and grew up as a member of a French Labour Zionist youth group in France, the book does a great job providing insight into the military occupation of Palestinian from a former Zionist perspective. He doesn't shy away from fully laying out the xenophobic, bigoted, racist, classist, etc, views/language he grew up hearing as part of the Zionist movement and as an Israeli citizen.

The author and his wife are now anti-zionists.

[Tommy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A provocative title, no doubt, but it does accurately warn you of the soup to nuts critique of the State of Israel you are about to get from a Jewish man who lived there for many years.

Israel is a project of ethnic cleansing and hate. It has become one of the most right wing countries on earth as a result. Cypel details pretty clearly how the early ideals of a socialist Zionism (the kibbutzim, after all, are founded on pretty left wing principles, ignoring the land theft) have faded away and instead israeli society has become rotten and racist. It’s worst in the occupied territories, where settlers have become a Ku Klux Klan, daily committing acts of violence against Palestinians who do not have the same rights under Israeli law.

The title makes it sound like the Jews are the real victims here. And that’s not true. The book very clearly documents the crimes against the Palestinians. However, there is a case to be made that through the act of being an occupier and colonizer, you also lose your humanity and become a victim. And this is very much the case with a country founded in response to the crimes of the Nazis.

The problem is Israel doesn’t act like the Nazis were all that bad. The words Nazi and kapo are thrown around daily in a way we Americans may call someone a bastard or loser. Talk about banality of evil! Through ahistorical, rhetorical trickery Netanyahu has routinely tried to shift the origins for the Holocaust on the Palestinians, saying Hitler got the idea from them. Anything to justify his crimes. And worst of all, Netanyahu continues to align himself with hard right governments around the world that actually spread antisemitism.

Oh and there are several quotes in here from rabbis and Israeli leaders saying things like “Hitler was right, but he should have targeted Arabs not Jews.” It’s insane.

There is then much discussion about the two main Jewish diasporas, the one in the US and the one in France, and their differences. The US diaspora, while initially clinging to Israel for understandable reasons, has slowly drifted away. American Judaism, namely Reform Judaism, has increasingly rejected Israel’s hard right turn.

In the end, a one state solution in the land between the Mediterranean and the Jordan, where all residents enjoy equal rights and freedoms, is the only way forward. This will be best for the Palestinians of course. But it will also be best for the Jews, both in Israel and in the diaspora.

—

The book was written well before October 7th, but was reissued with an updated introduction. It was very good. However, the author refused to use the word genocide. I found this strange, given the book he’d written basically lays out the ways in which Israel so badly wants to commit one and be done with the “Palestinian problem.” As I write this, 2 days ago the UN declared Israel is definitely committing genocide. He wrote the introduction in 2024, so maybe the definitive proof wasn’t quite there yet, and he wanted to be careful with his words?

[Jake · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is notable that this book came out right before 10/7 and the subsequent Gaza genocide. Perhaps at publication time, the book’s main point may still have raised some eyebrows. But now, in 2025, because of its colonial nature regarding Palestinians and ongoing genocidal actions, no reasonable person could deny that Israel presents the greatest danger to Jewish people worldwide. Cypel, along with a few other commentators, deserves high praise for identifying this long before the events of the past two years. Because of its clarity and foresight, this would be a great book to give to the few remaining Zionists who claim commitment to any type of liberal or progressive principles.

[Justus · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.75

[maile · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 rounded up. written by sylvain cypel, a jewish/french journalist & ex-zionist, this book explains the development of the israeli occupation of palestine & how its key values have vastly changed over time. cypel explains his personal disillusionment with israel & how, especially during the trump administration, the israeli government has become far-right, ultranationalistic & racist. their 2018 nation-state law constitutionalizes the apartheid of the palestinian people, something that HAD been occurring but is now written in their LAWS. their I a w s. cypel interviews and pulls information from both jewish and arab (and french and american) communities & intellectuals/policitians/activists/businesspeople and spends a lot of time analyzing netanyahu's views & policies. he also goes very in-depth into israel's very intentional dehumanizing tactics of the palestinian people, the overlooking & even celebration of violence against palestinians by the israeli government such as the torturing of palestinian children & their parents side-by-side), the relationship between islamophobia & anti-semitism, the white supremacy that now reigns in the occupied territories (ex: Israel does not allow Arabs & Black fox to live in certain neighborhoods, the segregation of Jewish mothers & Arab mothers in maternity wards, etc.)…..i'm just rambling at this point but this book is incredibly informative, well-developed, & just overall a very heavy read, especially knowing the Israeli government is currently committing a genocide RIGHT at this moment. i highly recommend if you want to see how man international laws the Israeli government has blatantly & proudly committed without any threat of impunity, and to see the perspectives of all the people involved.

[Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heavy and educational. If you are like me and thought that Israel is being a bully and disliked what was happening with the conflict in that region, then you would find this book super informative.

[cam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well researched and well written book exploring the disconnect behind the original ideal of the Israeli state and the crumbling facade right leaning officials are keeping in place to maintain the farce. Touches on the disconnect between American and French Jewish diaspora and the Jewish state, and the different mechanisms and changes to laws Israeli officials have used to maintain their power and dominance.

[Leah · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a terribly written book, which is a huge disappointment considering the credentials of the author. It’s a long, one-sided rant and desperately needs a strong editor. But I learned a ton about the Palestinian occupation.

[Pardis TD · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a former communist I support Israel against the forms of british capitalistic oppression through colonization, the forced colonization of Israel through Palestine was wrong. Communists may have different views true, but in the end we all want peace and prosperity for the goodness of the species. We don't support parties, i.e. democrats or republicans as that's contrary to socialism, socialism is the absence of parties altogether. I don't agree with 99% of the palestinian parties as they are far right or right, even though they claim to be left like hamas is a well-known far-right party. And parties in general like that all are pro-colonization by the brits but no colonization by the israelis, it's very hypocritical. Israel can also be viewed as a socialist movement however using religion as a pretext is not very ideal, and also it is important to consider that British jews are not necessarily pro-israel. Some are not even pro-jewish and their opinions can work against them. I'd consider Israel a fairly socialist country due to the war, however war is more of a leninist perspective, like the bolivian war, rather than a real socialist one. Real socialists are really more like scientists, like the paris commune, the catalan rebellion or the provisional irish republican army. They went closer to real socialism. Lamarck was the closest one in particular as were the scientific revolutions. Judicial revolutions have been very few. It is important to consider that Britain remains a dictatorship where the people are coerced into racism, therefore anyone in any religion will share the same views as the British even if they may feign support for Israel, they're heavily trauma-bonded and heavily rely on the British coercive and abusive tactics, including psychological, physical and sexual traumas. Not everyone responds to traumas in the same way. A lot of psychological services are used by the British mafias against traumatized victims, it is easier to give into requests, and let's highlight the necessity of mass pressure, as in the hate crime scenario, all the population of Britain will be against you. It is a 100% antagonism, even if victims minimize the abuse to say 90%. It is a very unite in crime society and that's why it experienced multiple mass extinctions and was repopulated over and over again, they are very tribal in nature, and they've only made this far through the compassion of other narcissistic societies and through parasitic or dishonest ways. It would be stupid to support it.

[Laurel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another deeply informative read that I consider necessary for anyone trying to understand the true ideologies and beliefs that constitute the basis of Zionism and that are at the core of the IDF and the overall government of Israel.

I will mention that this maybe shouldn't be the very first book you pick up on the topic, especially if you're very new to political non-fiction. There were definitely some items that were not quite as easy for me to grasp, but the fact that I have been reading a decent amount on Palestine and Israel in the past few weeks, helped me understand Cypel's deeply critical rundown of Zionism and how it works.

Some of the topics in this book that I found the most eye-opening include:
- the techniques used by the IDF to dehumanize Palestinians and desensitize their new soldiers so as to convince them to uphold the violence against the Palestinian people;
- the ties held by the government of Israel with powerful white supremacist figureheads;
- the relationship between islamophobia and antisemitism and how both of these prejudices are weaponized by the government of Israel;
- the anti-Arab racism that is taught to the people of Israel and the way that left-leading Israelis that publicly support Palestine are punished for their views and actions;
- the BDS movement and the government of Israel's dire need to control any criticisms that they undergo;
- the differing outlooks between American Jews and French Jews as well as between different generations of Jewish people;
- etc.

I will say, I didn't love the way that this book was organized. Maybe I'm biased as someone who follows along much easier when a situation is presented in chronological order, and I'm sure there are some people who would appreciate the separation of chapters by topics and detailed sub-headers. But it did make it a bit difficult for me to follow along, and not quite as smooth of a reading as it could have been.

Nonetheless, I definitely recommend it if you're looking to delve deeper into the insidiousness of Zionism and all its proponents.

[David · Rating 2 out of 5]

**.5

This book was written a couple of years before October 7, and rather than feel prophetic, it felt like a product from a different era, woefully dated and completely missing the point. While I did appreciate getting the French perspective (although it's the third largest Jewish community, is often overshadowed by the US and UK), the main thrust of the book was misguided.

The first half of the book is almost ok, reviewing the toll that the occupation has taken on Israeli society, the way it perverts justice and turns impressionable young soldiers into war criminals. And the crushing weight that continues to weigh down the Palestinian population for decades.
The problem is that he fails to provide any context for these failings. In this worldview, all Israeli violence is unprovoked and unjustified, and therefore the epitome of evil. There are never any precipitating attacks, only harsh reprisals.

Worse, he skirts around the issue of what "occupation" actually means. He accuses Israel of being duplicitous and unserious about territorial compromise, but never even considers the position of the Palestinians and what they want. He implies that if only Israel hadn't built settlements in the land seized in 1967, everything would be fine. Completely skirting around the calls for a "Free Palestinian, From The River To The Sea" that would completely end Israel's existence. Which may be what he secretly wants, but pretending that Israel's recalcitrance is the source of the conflict and that he cares about its fate is the exact opposite, and hypocritically cynical at best.

[Tommy Vo · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book should be more widespread. The author was the son of a French Zionist leader, and moving to Israel after high school to serve in the IDF and study at the university for 12 years. His experience made him starkly anti-Zionist and more damning of Israel than any other book I’ve read from Palestinian authors.

Cypel exposes the hypocrisy or damage of Israel. How Israel has become openly racist, allied with nations that have strong anti-Semitic history because Islamophobia is more important, how Israel sells invasive surveillance technology to authoritarian governments, and even how Netanyahu claimed Hitler didn’t want to exterminate the Jews until a Palestinian told him to.

There are two tools that Israel uses to claim immunity, calling all attacks and criticisms against Israel as “anti-Semitic” and “acts of terrorism”. Those two things immediately steer people away from criticizing Israel because most people don’t know anything about Israel-Palestine. This book breaks down exactly what people need to understand the situation and bring them up to speed, and dismantle those two tools Israel has been using to commit genocide against the Palestinians and falls deeper into isolated ethnocentrism.

[Ross Baker · Rating 5 out of 5]

No one who reads this book can excuse or defend Israel’s actions against the Palestinians. It’s littered with examples of apartheid racist brutal facts of the daily abuse and violence Palestinians live under with the illegal occupation. I cannot defend Hamas at all, but they exist because of Israel and the settler violence and the subjugation of Palestinians.
The population is indoctrinated to believe Palestinian lives don’t matter, and the soldiers indoctrinated to dehumanise Palestinians to allow for their violence and abuse. All of the book is made more authentic by the author who has served in the IDF, and also a former Zionist who has rejected it. This is his telling of life, politically, media and culture or the Israel state.

I highly recommend, not to bloat any anti semitism but to over ride the victim projection of the Israel state. No state actor that does what Israel does to Palestinians, can be called a moral or just state.

[Jared · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's amazing that there are constantly new ways to describe how much Israel sucks, and has historical and consistently sucked from 1948 to today. One quote that stuck with me and I felt I had to write down was "portraying Palestinians as anti-Semitic is an age old tactic... ... it saved (Israelis) from thinking about the fact that they were colonizers." This book approaches the depths of Israel's shittiness from an interesting angle. While we (the Jews) are definitely not the biggest victim of Israel's behavior, maybe this book will get people who care more about things when it happens to Jewish people (like an unfortunate percentage of my extended family) to understand that Israel is a threat to us all. Once again, I imagine people who don't need to read this book will read it, and people who desperately need to read this book won't, but maybe this will be the book I finally convince the Zionists in my family to actually read.

[Marcus Skeaff · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was very good and excellently sourced, included a lot of insight about the complex dynamics of the relationship between America’s unsinkable aircraft carrier and American citizens. At times it felt like the book strayed from the point a bit and just went into detail about the terrible treatment that the apartheid state deals to palestinians without talking about how it affects jews within and outside Israel. But after the halfway point Cypel goes into very profound detail about that relationship and bring some important personal insight. The preface of the edition that i read also included how Israel dealt with 10/7 and how it worsened an already diplomatically faltering state in the eyes of the international community.

[Christopher Gold · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really insightful book from someone who is not just a fanatic anti-Zionist, but someone who’s a Jew and has been deeply involved in the affairs of Israel for a long long time and can see the state for what it truly is. An extreme right wing ethnostate that has now made apartheid part of their basic laws. My favorite chapter was when he discussed the state of American Jews in relation to Israel. At this point knowledge of Israel’s crimes is widespread, including amongst the massive population of American Jews, and nowadays American Jews aren’t just blindly loyal to Israel and hopefully we can be the spearhead of change for the better.

[Jenni · Rating 4 out of 5]

Accessible, contemporary, and introductory-level read that sets forth most criticisms of modern Israel: its authoritarian tendencies and repression of dissident speech, how its ethnonationalist Nation-State law belies its claim of being a democracy, how its cybersecurity exports are knowingly sold to human rights abusers, etc. The overall thesis is that the flaws in modern day Israel (i) are at odds with American Judaism’s conception of “tikkun olam,” the obligation Jews have to make the world a better place, and (ii) Israel’s treatment of Palestinians provides rationale and cover to anti-Semites and thus endangers, rather than helps, world Jewry.

[Dani Kass · Rating 5 out of 5]

oh man, i want an updated version of this. especially the parts where he discusses the new york times being open to anti-israel voices.

but even beyond the hindsight naiveté, it’s incredible how the horrors you can learn about israel just grow and grow and grow. this book had a lot about laws, judicial process and the manipulation of the holocaust that i hadn’t read before, along with some welcomed commentary on birthright and hypocritical international relations and political alignments. it was also fascinating to see the fracturing of judaism and the evolution of zionism as israel’s terrorism continues, and the way the jewish community is so different in france.

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

Appreciated the perspective of the author, boldly written with sections on the crimes of Israeli leaders and soldiers against Palestinians, accusing Israel of apartheid, American Jews and French Jew’s attitudes towards the state of Israel, and the 1 vs 2 state solutions. A tough read, but written fairly with lots of examples and evidence. The book was written during Biden’s presidency and the author ended the book stating about how glad he was that the Trump years were over. Real life spoiler - there’s a Trump 2.0 😅

[Andrew Child]

for years I was placated by the "if you're not jewish, don't speak up for Palestine" argument and this book paired with Angela Davis' 'Freedom is a Constant Struggle' really gave me a firm foundation on which to stand against that mentality. This is a great, sweeping intro to the occupation of Palestine from a former "Israeli" and I'm happy to have read it. it is a goal of mine now to be reading more that has been written by Palestinians

[alyssa]

I’m not sure how to rate this: it was very informative and thorough and covered a lot from Israeli society and also the Jewish diaspora in terms of Israeli politics, actions, and rhetoric unto Palestinians and others. This book was written after the Israeli 2021 bombing of Gaza and attempted expulsion of Palestinian families in Jerusalem from their homes in Sheikh Jarrah and other neighborhoods. Unfortunately, it very wrongly predicts Biden’s course of action a la Palestine-Israel.

[Ange · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you're reading books on Palestine and Israel, I highly recommend reading The State of Israel vs. the Jews. While Palestinians are the main victims of Israel's increasingly fascist spiral, and that should never be forgotten, when arguing with any zionist family or friends, this book provides a broader basis to argue with. Specifically, Israel is not only bad for Palestinians, it is bad for Israeli Jews and the Jewish diaspora, whether they support Israel's actions or not.

[Diana Ishaqat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Illustrative examples, easy-to-follow historical narratives and timelines, and based on interviews with some of the state’s most active intellectual voices. Delves into the divisive use of Yiddish vs. Hebrew, the political climate in Israel between the left and right, and the unjust, horrifying treatment of Palestinian people in everyday life. I think the author’s take on the diaspora in the US and Europe and the differences in general views is much more optimistic than mine.