ABSTRACT
As its sixtieth anniversary nears, Israel remains one of the most controversial countries in the world. For every person pleased or thrilled by the seemingly miraculous rise of Israel, there have been far more people distressed, puzzled or angry at its success. Arab nationalist, Third World, Western leftist and even religious scholars and leaders have been particularly vexed by the success of Israel, which stands out against the failures of pan-Arabism, Arab nationalism, Third World socialism, Communism and Islamic fundamentalism and their foreign patrons (Nazi Germany, the Soviet Union).1
