Israel profusely celebrated the Palestinian Nakba as its triumphantindependence on May 1 and is preparing for a massive celebration for the 50thanniversary of its occupation of East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza.Two dates are often used to frame the so-called Palestinian-Israeliconflict: Nakba Day on May 15 and Naksa Day on June 5.Nakba means "catastrophe", a reference that was commonly used todescribe the violence meted out against the Palestinian Arab population during theperiod of British colonialism in Palestine, which extended from 1917 to 1948.The term Nakba morphed to define the zenith of British and Zionistcolonisation and settlement in Palestine, which ultimately led to the ethnic cleansing of the Palestinianpopulation from their historic homeland in 1947 and 1948.May 15, 1948, was the final act of all previous "catastrophes".Naksa, on the other hand, means the "letdown".In that period, there were high hopes among ordinary Arabs that Arab armieswould manage to defeat Israel, reclaim historic Palestine and pave the road forthe Palestinian refugees - dispossessed during the Nakba - to go back to theirhomes.By then, the number of refugees had grown rapidly, and refugee camps werebursting at the seams with misery and destitution. During the Nakba nearly 500 villageswere destroyed, entire Palestinian townsdepopulated and approximately 800,000 Palestinians exiled to make room forJewish immigrants who arrived from all corners of the globe.The 1967 war, however, was a major letdown.The Arabs were soundly defeated.Lack of preparedness and hyped expectations on the Arab side, and massiveAmerican-Western military and financial support of Israel, led to a humiliatingdefeat for the Arabs on all fronts: the West Bank, Jordan's western border, theGaza Strip, the Egyptian Sinai and the Syrian Golan Heights.That defeat settled the military score decisively for Israel, cementingUS-Israel relations like never before; and, equally important, led to afundamental shift in language.For a long time after the war, the Nakba was largely assigned to thehistory books and Israel's new borders - which acquired massive Arab lands,including the entirety of historic Palestine - became the new frame ofreference.The 1967 defeat brought an end to a previous dilemma in which thePalestinian armed struggle was often dictated by Arab countries, mainly Egypt,Jordan and Syria.The occupation of the remaining 22 percent of the West Bank shifted thefocus to East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza, and allowed the Palestinianfaction, Fatah, to redefine its role in light of Arab defeat and subsequentdivision.That division was highlighted most starkly in the August 1967 Khartoumsummit, where Arab leaders clashed over priorities and definitions. ShouldIsrael's territorial gains redefine the status quo ante? Should Arabs focus onreturning to a pre-1967 situation or that of pre-1948?The Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO)insisted that the defeat in the war should not compromise the integrity of thestruggle, and that Palestine - all of Palestine - was still the pressing issue.The message of Gamal Abdul Nasser, the Egyptian president, seemed, for once,befuddled, although he continued to advocate for a conventional militaryconfrontation with Israel.Syria, on the other hand, did not attend the summit.Nonetheless, the Arabs agreed that there would be no negotiations, norecognition and no peace with Israel, whose behaviour continued to be a sourceof loss, defeat