Hebrew Fascism in Palestine, 1922–1942

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xiii

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2. Introduction: A Meeting in Beirut

   • Dan Tamir

   Pages 1-27

3. Individuals Making a Movement: Short Biographies of Prominent Proponents of Hebrew Fascism

   • Dan Tamir

   Pages 29-40

4. Facing an Unprecedented Disaster

   • Dan Tamir

   Pages 41-60

5. The Nation Stands Above All

   • Dan Tamir

   Pages 61-70

6. Tormented by Foreigners and Betrayed by Brothers

   • Dan Tamir

   Pages 71-84

7. Is Spengler’s Prophecy Coming True?

   • Dan Tamir

   Pages 85-98

8. Nation, Unification, Consolidation

   • Dan Tamir

   Pages 99-118

9. Leaders and Self-Sacrificing Prophets

   • Dan Tamir

   Pages 119-141

10. “Born Amidst Blood and Fire”

    • Dan Tamir

    Pages 143-168

11. The Stronger Rules: Might Is Right

    • Dan Tamir

    Pages 169-182

12. Conclusion: A Hebrew Fascist Movement in Palestine

    • Dan Tamir

    Pages 183-196

13. Back Matter

    Pages 197-210

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This book focuses on a little-studied yet virulent and devoted fascist faction that was active within Zionist circles during the 1920s and 1930s. Since the early 1930s, the term 'fascist' was regularly used by Labour Zionists in order to defame their right-wing opponents, the 'Revisionists'. The latter group, for its part, tended to reject such accusations. Up to this point, however, little comprehensive research has been carried out for examining the possible existence of a genuine Hebrew fascism in Palestine according to a global comparative model of generic fascism. This book is an attempt to do so, examining the first wave of fascism in Palestine, during the inter-war period.


The current discussion in Israel about rising fascist movements and organisations gained momentum during the past decade. Telling the story of a yet relatively neglected part of the roots of the Israeli right wing may not only shed light on the past, but also provide us with a historical perspective when measuring contemporary political movements and events. 

• labour zionists
• revisionist zionists
• interwar Palestine
• generic fascism
• mobilising emotions
• religion and society

“The book’s subject matter is fascinating, and Tamir has clearly undertaken a mammoth amount of archival work in order to bring to life, once again, some very important, forgotten voices and some very important, forgotten journals. … Tamir’s research very thorough, and his passion for the subject very evident indeed. … Hebrew Fascism in Palestine, 1922–1942 is, nonetheless, a solid new addition to the body of scholarship on the subject.” (Peter Bergamin, Israel Studies Review, Vol. 35 (1), 2020)

• Department of Politics and Government, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheba, Israel

  Dan Tamir

Dan Tamir is Adjunct Lecturer in the Department of Politics and Government at the Ben Gurion University, Israel, and a Research Associate in the Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies at the University of Zürich, Switzerland.

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