Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza is its longest - and perhaps darkest - conflict. But the war in Gaza is part of a much longer history. In Gaza and the Jews , eminent Israeli historian Tom Segev brings to life the history of Jewish encounters with Gaza, from the Bible's Samson to the messianic Ottoman-era visions of Nathan of Gaza to the modern age. He traces the revealing history of the little-known Jewish communities and figures who lived in Gaza from the second century BC until the founding of Israel in 1948. And he explores how this history created mythologies, memories and outlooks that continue to resonate today.