Op-Ed: Musings on War and Peace

in the Middle East and Beyond

by Yehuda Lukacs

Reviewed by Zack Manning
June 11, 2026

Op-Ed: Musings on War and Peace in the Middle East and Beyond gathers over four decades of writing by Yehuda Lukacs — scholar of International Relations, university administrator, and educator. Spanning more than forty years, the collection reflects a lifetime committed to wrestling with some of the most intractable political and moral dilemmas of our time.

Yehuda issues what can only be described as a clarion call for international education and cultural exchange as indispensable tools for addressing global conflict, particularly in the Middle East. His essays consistently return to the conviction that dialogue, institutional cooperation, and cross-cultural understanding are not naïve aspirations but necessary foundations for peace.

I read this collection not only as a scholar, but as someone who witnessed many of the experiences behind these essays firsthand. In 2004 and 2005, I lived with Yehuda in Israel/Palestine and accompanied him on many of the journeys that would later find their way into his writing. To encounter these episodes again on the page is to see lived history refracted through the disciplined lens of a seasoned academic. The immediacy of those years — the tensions, hopes, frustrations — remains palpable.

One of Yehuda’s central themes throughout his writings is the diagnosis of the “cancer” of Israel’s failure to wind down its occupation. Without resorting to simplistic or grandiose solutions, he carefully diagnoses the structural and moral costs that this enduring reality imposes on both Israelis and Palestinians. His approach is measured rather than polemical; he seeks clarity over slogans, analysis over outrage.

The book’s structure is itself revealing. Organized in reverse chronological order, beginning with essays from 2025 and moving backward through time, the reader experiences a kind of intellectual descent. Reading it felt to me like diving into the Atlantic in search of the Titanic — uncovering layers of a political reality that once seemed possible but now feels submerged, altered, or lost. The backward movement underscores both continuity and regression in the region’s political landscape.

The essays vary in style and venue, reflecting their original publication contexts. Yet across formats, Yehuda’s voice remains consistent: principled, deeply informed, and guided by a commitment to education as a force for human betterment. This is not merely a collection of opinion pieces; it is the record of a life devoted to public engagement.

Anyone who cares about education, the Middle East, or the broader human condition to grapple with the world’s ongoing fault lines would benefit from engaging with this work. Yehuda has dedicated his life to causes larger than himself, and this collection stands as testament to that commitment. His current writings continue to appear on Substack, extending the conversation into the present.

Here is a link to his ongoing work:

Yehuda’s Substack