Summary of A Genocide Scholar Asks “What Went Wrong” in Israel

Overview of "A Genocide Scholar Asks 'What Went Wrong' in Israel"

This New Yorker Radio Hour episode features host David Remnick interviewing Omer Bartov, an Israeli‑born historian and professor of Holocaust and Genocide Studies at Brown University, about his new book Israel, What Went Wrong? and his public warnings that Israel’s campaign in Gaza since October 7, 2023, moved from large‑scale war crimes into acts he considers genocidal. Bartov explains how his personal biography and scholarship shaped his assessment, defines the legal standard for genocide, identifies moments and policies that convinced him genocide was taking place, and argues that change will require external pressure—especially from the United States.

Key points and main takeaways

• Background: Bartov (b. 1954) served in the IDF, later studied at Oxford, taught in Israel and emigrated to the U.S.; he is a longtime scholar of WWII and the Holocaust now at Brown.
• Early warnings: In November 2023 Bartov publicly warned that rhetoric and actions after Hamas’s October 7 attack already showed a trajectory toward genocide and urged urgent international intervention.
• Legal standard: He uses the 1948 UN Genocide Convention definition—genocide requires intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a protected group—and stresses that proving intent is central.
• Turning point — Rafah (May 2024): Bartov identifies the Rafah offensive, where a city crowded with displaced civilians was flattened after being directed into few areas with no humanitarian infrastructure, as the moment the campaign met the genocide threshold.
• Evidence of intent: He cites genocidal rhetoric from officials, operational tactics (mass displacement, destruction of homes, concentration of civilians), closure of borders leaving civilians nowhere to flee, and lack of reconstruction or care afterward.
• U.S. responsibility: Bartov argues the United States enabled and could have constrained Israeli operations (arms, funding, diplomatic protection). He says decisive pressure from Washington early on might have prevented escalation.
• Zionism and the state: He contends contemporary Israeli governance has evolved into an extreme ethno‑national project; Zionism as currently practiced is, in his view, not reformable and the Israeli state must be reinvented along civic lines.
• Political prospects: Removing Netanyahu is necessary but not sufficient—Bartov is skeptical Israeli or Palestinian internal dynamics alone can produce a humane solution; he calls for external shock therapy (international pressure).
• Personal/political consequences: Bartov has faced backlash, threats, and institutional pressure; he has avoided returning to Israel pending political developments and fears for safety.

Notable quotes and insights

• On October 7 and 1973: “The sense of shock, the lack of preparedness, the arrogance…was very similar.”
• On the need for early warning: “It is crucial to warn of the potential for genocide before it occurs, rather than belatedly condemn it after it has taken place.”
• Legal focus on intent: “The only definition that I find relevant…is the [1948] Genocide Convention.”
• On Rafah: “By August, Rafah is gone. It doesn't exist.”
• On culpability and pain: “Our heart must be broken…that that was caused by Jewish men and women…children and grandchildren of my friends.”
• On Zionism: “Zionism became a state ideology…transforming into…extremism, militarism, racism, and eventually of genocide.”

Topics discussed

• Bartov’s biography: IDF service, evolution from mainstream Zionism to critical stance, emigration and academic career.
• The October 7, 2023 Hamas attacks: characterized as war crimes and crimes against humanity for killings and hostage-taking.
• The Israeli military campaign in Gaza: civilian toll, destruction of infrastructure, displacement patterns, and specific operations (notably Rafah).
• Genocide: legal definition, how to detect intent, historical comparisons (e.g., Allied bombings in WWII versus postwar reconstruction).
• U.S. policy and responsibility: military/diplomatic support, missed opportunities to constrain Israel.
• Zionism, Nakba, and Israeli society: historical denial, education, settler violence in the West Bank, erosion of liberal Zionist hopes.
• Academic freedom and campus tensions: teaching the Holocaust and Nakba; administrative pressures and public backlash.

Context, criticism, and nuance

• Bartov distinguishes October 7 as a war crime by Hamas while simultaneously arguing Israel’s subsequent campaign crossed into genocide due to intent and implementation.
• He acknowledges differences between Gaza’s destruction and the Holocaust—arguing distinct genocides can conform to the legal definition without being identical.
• He addresses common counterarguments (e.g., other wartime atrocities, strategic military necessity) by returning to the question of intent and the postwar handling of civilian populations (reconstruction vs. permanent dispossession).
• The term “genocide” has provoked strong domestic and international controversy; Bartov notes both discomfort among Israelis (associating the word with the Holocaust) and political pushback accusing him of disloyalty or worse.

Implications and recommended actions (as argued or implied by Bartov)

• For policymakers: Immediate, credible U.S. pressure (conditions on aid, limits on operations) to prevent further mass destruction and displacement; international mechanisms to investigate intent and protect civilians.
• For publics and institutions: Attention to rhetoric that dehumanizes civilians and urges removal of protections; support for humanitarian access and long‑term reconstruction planning.
• For scholars and educators: Defend academic freedom to teach complex histories (Holocaust and Nakba) and encourage informed, evidence‑based discussion.

Quick facts

• Guest: Omer Bartov — professor of Holocaust and Genocide Studies, Brown University.
• Book: Israel, What Went Wrong?
• Key dates referenced: October 7, 2023 (Hamas attack), November 2023 (Bartov’s NYT op‑ed warning), May 2024 (Rafah offensive highlighted as turning point).
• Estimated Palestinian death toll in episode: “by now exceeds 70,000” (figure cited in interview).

Bottom line

Omer Bartov frames the post‑October 7 Israeli campaign in Gaza as a trajectory that shifted from large‑scale war crimes into acts that meet the UN legal standard for genocide—driven by explicit rhetoric, mass displacement, destruction of civilian life and infrastructure, and a refusal to allow safe refuge or reconstruction. He places significant responsibility on U.S. policy for enabling the campaign and calls for external pressure to force a fundamental reinvention of Israeli governance away from ethno‑nationalist violence.