Shlomo Gabbay

From King David to David Ben-Gurion Shlomo Gabbay

David Ben-Gurion declared Israel a state on May 15, 1948. With only 600,000 Jews in the area-and surrounded by hostility on all sides-most of the world believed Israel would not last.

But last it did. And Ben-Gurion became the first prime minister of the tiny Jewish nation, calling Jews from around the world to come home.

Dr. Shlomo Gabbay heeded Ben-Gurion's call. Leaving Morocco at age eleven, he completed his schooling there and eventually served in two wars. Gabbay's participation in the forging of Israel, and his scholarship of both biblical history and Middle Eastern foreign relations, prompted him to investigate Ben-Gurion's accomplishments. The author demonstrates how and why Ben-Gurion was superior to his contemporaries on the world stage, managing to draw parallels between the prime minister and King David-and ultimately proclaiming Ben-Gurion a modern day prophet of Israel.

Gabbay then turns his analysis to current relations, offering a vision for Israel's future that picks up where Ben-Gurion left off. He believes that a shift in American diplomacy in the Middle East can help nudge Israel into an alliance with many of its neighbors...an alliance that will successfully curb Iranian aggression and eventually lead to lasting peace.