Ramachandra Guha: Two writers whose thoughts on Palestine are worth recalling four decades later

Whatever one’s nationality – or religion – every sensible person should be relieved that a ceasefire has finally come to Gaza, that the remaining Israeli hostages have been released by Hamas, that the Israeli army and air force have (at least for now) halted their savage war, that food, medicines and other forms of relief can finally reach the beleaguered and brutalised Palestinians. But at the same time, every sensible person knows that this ceasefire is merely a very modest first step, and that the road to peace and justice remains arduous and tortuous, with many hurdles to overcome.

As it happens, in the weeks leading to the ceasefire, I have been reading two books, each of which contains some striking passages that bear on what could, or perhaps more accurately should, happen after the Gaza ceasefire. Both books were written in the early 1980s, and both have a very wide canvas, in which the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians is merely a sideshow. Yet what they said, even in passing, about this conflict 40 and more years ago bears recalling today.

The first book is the autobiography of the celebrated South African freedom-fighter, Joe Slovo. Born in Lithuania, Slovo migrated with his family...

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