informed Observer of israeli political life, francophile, he has devoted a part of his work to the history of the French far right.
The historian Zeev Sternhell, one of the historical figures of the israeli left, passed away this Sunday at age 85 from complications related to a surgery, have announced the NGO “Peace Now” that he had co-founded, and the daily Haaretz.
informed Observer of israeli political life, francophile, he has devoted a part of his work to the history of the French far right with trials as Neither right nor left: fascist ideology in France or The history of repressed – La Rocque, The Croix de feu and fascism in French, published in 2019.
READ ALSO >> Zeev Sternhell, the anti-fascist
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Born in Poland in 1935 to a jewish family, he lost, as a child, all of his family during the Second world War: his father died on his return from the Polish army, while his mother and sister were murdered by the nazis.
An uncle and aunt were then passed to a catholic. He then emigrated after the war in France, which became his adopted home and the subject of his research, prior to joining Israel shortly after its creation in 1948.
With the historian Georges Bensimhon, he had signed the book To the origins of Israel: between nationalism and socialism. His criticism of the expansion, according to him, the israeli right in recent decades was also in Israel.
“academic Excellence” and “deep commitment”
last November, Zeev Sternhell had given a lecture at the French institute Romain Gary, Jerusalem, in front of some of his most faithful readers, but also critics, and people who are more religious, which had given rise to the trade sharp and animated.
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The historian had participated in the yom Kippur war in 1973, prior to co-founding the NGO Peace Now, “Peace Now”, then favourable to a peace agreement between Israel and Egypt and today it is engaged in the fight against the expansion of jewish settlements in the occupied west bank.
Sunday morning, the website of the Haaretz newspaper, for which Zeev Sternhell signed chronic, has announced his death, attributed to a deterioration of his state of health after surgery.
The NGO “Peace Now” and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where he was a professor of political science, confirmed his death.
Zeev Sternhell was “the perfect example of a person who has managed to combine academic excellence with a deep commitment to our society and our country,” said the university in a press release.
