The French intifada: the long war between France and its Arabs

Abstract

This review examines Andrew Hussey’s The French Intifada: The Long War between France and Its Arabs, a work that explores the historical roots of contemporary tensions between France and its Arab and North African populations through the legacies of colonialism. While acknowledging the book’s accessible narrative and broad historical scope, the review argues that its framing and presentation reinforce problematic colonial binaries and blur important distinctions between categories such as Arab, Muslim, French, and Algerian. It further questions the book’s reliance on journalistic observation and its treatment of identity, anti-Semitism, and the French banlieues, suggesting that these interpretations oversimplify complex postcolonial realities. The review concludes that, despite offering valuable historical context for general readers, the book provides an uneven and sometimes controversial account of contemporary France and its colonial legacy.