Language is a powerful yet deceptive thing. It can be used to convey someone's plight and it can also be used to hide unpalatable sordid deeds. Nowhere are words adulterated more for political ends than in Israel and Palestine today. It is no secret that Israel employs a legion of well-funded propagandists, and it also relies on self-appointed members of the press - the pro bono apologists, who serve the same purpose. Just like the lopsided imbalance of military power, the means to command and change language rests primarily with pro-Israeli propagandists. Their language obfuscates and exculpates Israel's actions against a basically defenseless population; it perpetuates the injustices and contributes to a continuation of Israel's occupation and theft of more land.

To make sense of the situation and to peer through the fog, a fraction of the post-Oslo commonly abused terms are translated in this glossary.

Click here to view the glossary table (PDF Format).