The Nakba, which means "catastrophe" in Arabic, refers to the mass displacement and dispossession of Palestinians during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war. The roots of the Nakba stem from the emergence of Zionism as a political ideology in late 19th-century Eastern Europe, which is based on the belief that Jews are a nation or a race that deserve their own state. Thousands of Eastern European and Russian Jews began settling in Palestine from 1882 onwards, pushed by the anti-Semitic persecution and pogroms they were facing in the Russian Empire, and the appeal of Zionism. The conflict between Arabs and Jews intensified in the 1930s with the increase of Jewish immigration, driven by persecution in Europe, and with the Zionist movement aiming to establish a Jewish state in Palestine. The Nakba was a deliberate and systematic act intended to establish a Jewish majority state in Palestine. Amongst themselves, Zionist leaders used the euphemism "transfer" when discussing plans for what today would be called ethnic cleansing. The establishment of Israel in 1948 led to the violent expulsion of approximately three-quarters of all Palestinians from their homes and homeland by Zionist militias and the new Israeli army. Although May 15, 1948, became the official day for commemorating the Nakba, armed Zionist groups had launched the process of displacement of Palestinians much earlier, and by May 15, half of the total number of Palestinian refugees had already been forcefully expelled from their country. The Nakba anniversary is a reminder not only of those tragic events of 1948 but of the ongoing injustice suffered by the Palestinians.