The Arabic word indihar is being used these days by Palestinians who view Israel's withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and northern West Bank as a victory for the al-Aksa intifada, which erupted in September 2000. And there appears to be a growing number of Palestinians who are truly convinced that the pullout is nothing but a retreat achieved through the blood of thousands of shahids, or martyrs. Still, many also consider it a conspiracy designed to tighten Israel's grip on the West Bank and Jerusalem. The Hans Wehr Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic translates indihar as "banishment and defeat." Hamas...