Israel continues to operate with impunity in what seems to be a brutal and protracted experiment, while much of the world looks on, says RAMZY BAROUD

IN the introduction to his first book, The Ambiguities of Power: British Foreign Policy Since 1945, historian Mark Curtis notes two broad approaches are available to those attempting to understand British foreign affairs.
“In the first, one can rely on the mainstream information system, consisting primarily of media and academia,” he explains. This approach frames British foreign policy as “fundamentally benevolent,” promoting grand principles such as peace, democracy and human rights.
No doubt this narrative informed the results of the recent Ipsos MORI poll, which found 34 per cent of Brits believe the British empire is something to be proud of, with just 16 per cent saying it is something to be ashamed of (around 40 per cent think it is something neither to be proud nor ashamed of).

New releases reviewed by IAN SINCLAIR


