In 1948 by a vote of the United Nations, the new nation state of Israel was established. What followed has been decades of additional conflict in an area of the world known for conflict. What led to the re-establishment of Jewish sovereignty in this historical Land of Israel, and why is that so important both to Jews and to many others? Along with the course in this Catalog on U.S.-Iran Relations, The Story helps explain current events in the Middle East. We will cover the history of the Jewish people in the land of Israel from antiquity to the modern day, presenting evidence of why Israel has been central to Jewish identity for 3000 years. This gives meaning to the Jewish movement towards “self-determination.” Embedded in the history of this movement, the modern-day Arab-Israeli conflict will deserve coverage in depth, specifically the conflicts with Iran, Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis. To get us there, among the questions we will attempt to answer are the following: What has life been like for Jews over the centuries before 1948? After 1948, what did the Soviet Union do to help, or hurt, Arab-Israeli relations once Israel was created? Why were the Oslo Accords important, and how did they fail? The conflict shifted from being called the Arab-Israeli conflict to being called the Palestinian-Israeli conflict - why did that happen, and what did that mean? Finally, let’s understand some important things about Israel: its population’s composition, and some of its internal political challenges. Required reading for the course is Israel: A Simple Guide to the Most Misunderstood Country on Earth by Noa Tishby.

Esther Pittman has a doctorate from Harvard University. She was awarded her Professional Society's National Distinguished Professor Award for "Outstanding Contributions to Management Education." She received her university's Best Professor Award and received the Best Paper Award from the Academy of Management. Esther was a tenured, full Professor of Organizational Behavior and Management and also worked as a consultant to executives in industry. She and her parents are Holocaust survivors.