Content Warning: This section of the guide discusses ethnic cleansing, war crimes, and anti-Muslim and anti-Arab racism and xenophobia.

Ethnic cleansing is the systematic and forced removal of one ethnic or religious group by another through violent means. As of right now, international law does not recognize ethnic cleansing as an independent crime. There is also no agreed upon definition. Khalidi argues that Israeli governments and security forces have committed ethnic cleansing against the Palestinians over the last 100 years.

Intifada means “uprising” or “rebellion” in Arabic. There are two intifadas referred to in this text: The First Intifada (1987-1993) and the Second Intifada (2000-2005). Both intifadas were significant periods of conflict between Palestinians and Israelis over ongoing disputes regarding sovereignty and national identity.

The First Intifada began in December 1987 in the Gaza Strip and quickly spread to the West Bank, areas which had been under Israeli control since the 1967 Six-Day War. This uprising was characterized by widespread protests, civil disobedience, and clashes between Palestinian civilians and the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF). Palestinians employed tactics such as strikes, boycotts, graffiti, and stone-throwing. The Israeli military response included arrests, curfews, and other security measures to quell the disturbances. Khalidi highlights how this intifada was the first time that the international community sympathized with the Palestinian cause, but he claims that any progress for Palestinians was ruined by the signing of the Oslo Accords, which Khalidi describes as the fifth declaration of war.