| A | B |
|---|
| intifada | an armed uprising of Palestinians against Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip |
| PLO | Palestinian Liberation Organization lead by Yasser Arafat that dominated the 70s and 80s |
| Hamas | fundamentalist Islamic Palestinian organization supporting and engaging in resistance against Israel in the Israeli-occupied territories, presently the ruling party of the palestian in Gaza |
| Sunni | one of the two main branches of Islam; It means "the way" and refers to the life and teaching of the Prophet Mohammed; it is the largest of the two branches |
| Shiites | The second largest branch of Islam that believe that only decendents of Mohammed's son-in-law Ali could the Caliphs or leader of the faith |
| imam | The political or religious leader for the Islmaic community; literally means exemplar |
| jihad | a holy war or battle for righteousness; this can take the form of fighting for justice, a holy place, or a battle between good and evil with an individual |
| Sabra | a native-born Israeli |
| Pogrom | a form of riot directed against a particular group, whether ethnic, religious, or other, and characterized by the killing and destruction of their homes, businesses, and religious centers |
| Hezbollah | Shiite terrorist organization with strong ties to Iran; seeks to create an Iranian fundamentalist Islamic state in Lebanon born in part from Israel’s occupation of Lebanon |
| Fedayeen | a group of people known to be volunteers, not connected to an organized government or military, in the Arab and Muslim world, usually when a government is deemed unjust or non-existent |
| Semite | a member of a Semitic-speaking people of Southwest Asia, including the Arab and Jewish peoples, and the ancient Assyrians, Babylonians, Carthaginians, Ethiopians, and Phoenicians |
| anti-semiticism | policies, views, or actions that harm or discriminate against Jews |
| Hasidic Jew | a member of a Jewish movement of popular mysticism founded in Eastern Europe in the 18th century. It emphasized a person's emotional relationship with God, and is now represented by a number of different religious groups. |
| Conservative Jew | a member of branch of Juadaism that respects traditional Jewish law and practice while advocating a flexible approach to Halakhah (books that interpret Torah law). Its major institutions, founded at the turn of the century |
| Orthodox Jew | a member of a branch of Judaism that adheres faithfully to the principles and practices of traditional Judaism as evidenced chiefly by a devotion to and study of the Torah, daily synagogue attendance if possible, and strict observance of the Sabbath, religious festivals, holy days, and the dietary laws |
| Shah | the title of a king in Persia, now modern day Iran |
| Al Fatah | a guerrilla group within the Palestine Liberation Organization |
| secularism | secular spirit or tendency, esp. a system of political or social philosophy that rejects all forms of religious faith and worship |
| Ayatollah | the highest rank title a cleric can hold in the Shia branch, a scholar in theology and/or philosopy |
