# Are Palestinians in Gaza a distinct ethnic group? Is pushing Palestinians out of Gaza "ethnic cleansing?" **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [October 7, 2023, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-palestinians-in-gaza-a-distinct-ethnic-group-is-pushing-palestinians-out-of-gaza-ethnic-cleansing/991255 "2023-10-07T22:16:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Dissonance](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/85f322/32.png) [@Dissonance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dissonance)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2023, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-palestinians-in-gaza-a-distinct-ethnic-group-is-pushing-palestinians-out-of-gaza-ethnic-cleansing/991255/61 "2023-10-08T03:46:38Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > Look at a map. They will most likely be pushed into the Sinai (Egypt). No doubt, Egypt will not be pleased. No, they won’t, and that you imagine they would just because they are the nearest country that isn’t Israel demonstrates how little thought you have actually given this question. It’s not a question of Egypt being displeased, it’s a question of Egypt refusing to allow Israel to deport them into their country. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2023, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-palestinians-in-gaza-a-distinct-ethnic-group-is-pushing-palestinians-out-of-gaza-ethnic-cleansing/991255/62 "2023-10-08T03:48:44Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > Then why use the words “ethnic cleansing?” Because they are a different ethnicity from the majority of Israelis, obviously. It makes no difference whether you categorize them as ethnically Palestinian or just Arab. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2023, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-palestinians-in-gaza-a-distinct-ethnic-group-is-pushing-palestinians-out-of-gaza-ethnic-cleansing/991255/63 "2023-10-08T03:49:13Z")
The why use that language? ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2023, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-palestinians-in-gaza-a-distinct-ethnic-group-is-pushing-palestinians-out-of-gaza-ethnic-cleansing/991255/64 "2023-10-08T03:49:54Z")
Are you being deliberately obtuse? **Because they are a different ethnicity from the majority of Israelis, obviously.** ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2023, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-palestinians-in-gaza-a-distinct-ethnic-group-is-pushing-palestinians-out-of-gaza-ethnic-cleansing/991255/65 "2023-10-08T03:51:34Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > I like Israel a lot but they are not without their own ethical issues. Those ethical issues don’t include “willingness to ethnically cleanse 2.5 million people” > [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > As an Israeli you know better than anyone you are not all of one mind politically. Far from it. The furthest of far right religious fanatics might agree with you, but they are little better than their Islamic equivalents. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2023, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-palestinians-in-gaza-a-distinct-ethnic-group-is-pushing-palestinians-out-of-gaza-ethnic-cleansing/991255/66 "2023-10-08T03:52:52Z")
OMG! Obtuse? Really? Of everyone here I am the only one who has provided citations for what that phrase means. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2023, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-palestinians-in-gaza-a-distinct-ethnic-group-is-pushing-palestinians-out-of-gaza-ethnic-cleansing/991255/67 "2023-10-08T03:58:30Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > _rendering an area ethnically homogeneous by using force or intimidation to remove persons of given groups from the area._” Okay, so let’s say their ethnicity is “Arab”. If Israel drives 2.5 million Arabs off their homes to make the land Israeli, how does that not meet the definition you provided. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2023, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-palestinians-in-gaza-a-distinct-ethnic-group-is-pushing-palestinians-out-of-gaza-ethnic-cleansing/991255/68 "2023-10-08T04:00:11Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > Okay, so let’s say their ethnicity is “Arab”. If Israel drives 2.5 million Arabs off their homes to make the land Israeli, how does that not meet the definition you provided Well, per his definition, if they drive them into the desert like he suggested and they all die, that’s genocide. Does that count? ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2023, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-palestinians-in-gaza-a-distinct-ethnic-group-is-pushing-palestinians-out-of-gaza-ethnic-cleansing/991255/69 "2023-10-08T04:02:19Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > Okay, so let’s say their ethnicity is “Arab”. If Israel drives 2.5 million Arabs off their homes to make the land Israeli, how does that not meet the definition you provided. Because there are still HUGE parts of the world with Arabs in them. They have not been “cleansed.” Or, define how big of an area needs to be “cleansed” before you deem it “ethnic cleansing.” One house? One block? One neighborhood? A town? A city? A county? A state? A country? A whole population? Where are the lines drawn? Now add in you are at war with them. Did the US ethnically cleanse Iwo Jima in WWII? ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2023, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-palestinians-in-gaza-a-distinct-ethnic-group-is-pushing-palestinians-out-of-gaza-ethnic-cleansing/991255/70 "2023-10-08T04:02:52Z")
> [@Babale](#): > > that’s genocide That is not genocide. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2023, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-palestinians-in-gaza-a-distinct-ethnic-group-is-pushing-palestinians-out-of-gaza-ethnic-cleansing/991255/71 "2023-10-08T04:04:03Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > Because there are still HUGE parts of the world with Arabs in them. They have not been “cleansed.” Are you seriously saying that you think it’s only ethnic cleansing if 100% of an ethnic group are involved? If there are other members of the same ethnic group doing fine in some other part of the world, it doesn’t count? So the Holocaust doesn’t count, because there were Jews living in the U.S.? ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2023, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-palestinians-in-gaza-a-distinct-ethnic-group-is-pushing-palestinians-out-of-gaza-ethnic-cleansing/991255/72 "2023-10-08T04:05:34Z")
You are seriously saying it’s only ethnic cleansing if 1% of an ethnic group are involved? Also, missed answering the rest of that post. ---
**Author:** ![Dissonance](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/85f322/32.png) [@Dissonance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dissonance)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2023, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-palestinians-in-gaza-a-distinct-ethnic-group-is-pushing-palestinians-out-of-gaza-ethnic-cleansing/991255/73 "2023-10-08T04:06:22Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > > [@Babale](#): > > > > that’s genocide > > That is not genocide. Um, yeah, it is. Your plan on where they are going to be relocated to after pulling teeth to finally get an answer from you isn’t even to ethnically cleanse them, it’s to straight up drive them into the Sinai desert. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2023, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-palestinians-in-gaza-a-distinct-ethnic-group-is-pushing-palestinians-out-of-gaza-ethnic-cleansing/991255/74 "2023-10-08T04:07:50Z")
Still not genocide. (And I seriously doubt they would be left to drop dead in the desert.) ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2023, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-palestinians-in-gaza-a-distinct-ethnic-group-is-pushing-palestinians-out-of-gaza-ethnic-cleansing/991255/75 "2023-10-08T04:08:16Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > Or, define how big of an area needs to be “cleansed” before you deem it “ethnic cleansing.” One house? One block? One neighborhood? A town? A city? A county? A state? A country? A whole population? > > Where are the lines drawn? If one family is driven from their home due to their race, i just call it racism, not ethnic cleansing. I’m not sure exactly where i draw the line, but 2.5M is definitely well beyond that line. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2023, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-palestinians-in-gaza-a-distinct-ethnic-group-is-pushing-palestinians-out-of-gaza-ethnic-cleansing/991255/76 "2023-10-08T04:09:19Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > You are seriously saying it’s only ethnic cleansing if 1% of an ethnic group are involved? Yes. It’s not about how many of that race aren’t driven away. It’s about the people who are driven away. If Los Angeles forcibly removed all the ethnic Chinese citizens of LA, that would be ethnic cleansing of LA, even though there are a billion Chinese in China who weren’t directly affected. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2023, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-palestinians-in-gaza-a-distinct-ethnic-group-is-pushing-palestinians-out-of-gaza-ethnic-cleansing/991255/77 "2023-10-08T04:09:52Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > If one family is driven from their home due to their race, i just call it racism And if you pushed them from their home because they kept shooting into your home and killing your family is that still racism? ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2023, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-palestinians-in-gaza-a-distinct-ethnic-group-is-pushing-palestinians-out-of-gaza-ethnic-cleansing/991255/78 "2023-10-08T04:11:04Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > You are seriously saying it’s only ethnic cleansing if 1% of an ethnic group are involved? Yes, if that is the number present in the area under consideration. The “cleansing” part means removing an ethnicity from a territory to make it ethnically homogenous. Per the definition you yourself posted: > “… _rendering an area ethnically homogeneous by using force or intimidation to remove persons of given groups from the area._ ” So most of your OP (and your thread title) is completely irrelevant to whether it would be ethnic cleansing. It makes no difference whether you consider them a distinct Palestinian ethnicity or “generic” Arabs. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2023, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-palestinians-in-gaza-a-distinct-ethnic-group-is-pushing-palestinians-out-of-gaza-ethnic-cleansing/991255/79 "2023-10-08T04:13:24Z")
Do you seriously think that all 2.5 million of those Palestinians are throwing bombs? No, Israel attacking the actual militants isn’t ethnic cleansing. Israel killing some civilians who are in the way is unfortunate, but that’s not ethnic cleansing, either. Israel driving out the entire population of the Gaza strip would be ethnic cleansing. Or maybe genocide, depending. ---
**Author:** ![Dissonance](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/85f322/32.png) [@Dissonance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dissonance)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2023, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-palestinians-in-gaza-a-distinct-ethnic-group-is-pushing-palestinians-out-of-gaza-ethnic-cleansing/991255/80 "2023-10-08T04:13:51Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > Still not genocide. Because? Do you imagine they are going to live off of mana from heaven? > [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > (And I seriously doubt they would be left to drop dead in the desert.) Jesus Christ, this is exactly what you finally said you’d do with them. Here, let me refresh your memory: > [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > Look at a map. They will most likely be pushed into the Sinai (Egypt). No doubt, Egypt will not be pleased. And just to remind you, the Sinai is a big fucking desert. And Egypt still isn’t going to allow Israel to drive them into their country. So, your big plan on where they are to be relocated to is to nowhere. That’s genocide. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-palestinians-in-gaza-a-distinct-ethnic-group-is-pushing-palestinians-out-of-gaza-ethnic-cleansing/991255.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-palestinians-in-gaza-a-distinct-ethnic-group-is-pushing-palestinians-out-of-gaza-ethnic-cleansing/991255.md?page=5)