Op-Ed: Musings on War & Peace in the Middle East and Beyond:

by Yehuda Lukacs

Overview

Op-Ed: Musings on War & Peace in the Middle East and Beyond is a powerful collection of essays by Yehuda Lukacs, a professor of global affairs and an internationally engaged writer. With sharp commentary and deeply personal reflections, Lukacs offers a thought-provoking analysis of one of the world's most troubled regions. Spanning three decades, these articles examine the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Arab-Israeli relations, U.S. foreign policy, the erosion of academic freedom, and the ever-evolving discourse on war and peace.

From Budapest to the Brazilian jungle, Tel Aviv to Washington, D.C., his life journey imbues every page with hard-won insights and a steady, unflinching urgency. An evocative autobiographical introduction traces the evolution of his views, setting the stage for the wide-ranging essays that follow. Among them is a series of vivid "postcards" written during a sabbatical in Israel, Egypt, Syria, and Cyprus, capturing the region's political, cultural, and human texture with immediacy and nuance. His writing on the war in Gaza blends scholarly rigor with moral clarity and a deep sense of urgency.

Drawing on years of leading students through the contested landscapes of Israel and Palestine, Lukacs offers a rare pedagogical lens, illustrating how direct encounters transform abstract geopolitics into life-changing experiences.

These carefully selected essays do more than chronicle events; they offer a nuanced framework for understanding a region where yesterday's conflicts continue to shape today's headlines.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9798319613486
Publisher:	Barnes & Noble Press
Publication date:	06/27/2025
Pages:	260
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.55(d)

About the Author

Yehuda Lukacs was born in Budapest and spent his childhood in the Brazilian rainforest and Tel Aviv. He holds a Ph.D. in International Relations from American University's School of International Service (SIS). He is Associate Professor Emeritus of Global Affairs at George Mason University, where he also served as Associate Provost of International Programs and founding director of the Center for Global Education.

In addition to his tenure at George Mason, he taught at American University, the University of Maryland, Corcoran College of Art and Design, University College Cork (Ireland), and Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE) in Budapest. He was also a Lady Davis Research Fellow at the Harry S. Truman Research Institute for the Advancement of Peace, Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

His books include Op-Ed: Musings on War & Peace in the Middle East and Beyond (KDP Books), Israel, Jordan, and the Peace Process (Syracuse University Press), The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: A Documentary Record (Cambridge University Press), Documents on the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict (Cambridge University Press), and The Arab-Israeli Conflict: Two Decades of Change, co-edited with Abdallah Battah (Westview Press).

His opinion articles have appeared in numerous publications, including The New York Times, The Hill, The Washington Times, Le Monde, The Richmond Times-Dispatch, Substack, The Palestine-Israel Journal, The Washington Examiner, Ha’aretz, The Jerusalem Post, and The Times of Israel.

He is the executive producer of the documentary Migration Studies, which was filmed in Hungary and Serbia in 2017, focusing on the refugee crisis in Europe.