Ethnic cleansing

Systematic removal of a certain ethnic or religious group

War & ConflictPolitics & GovernmentSocial & Human Rights
Ethnic cleansing
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Overview

What happened

On May 18, 1944, the Soviet Union carried out one of the most brutal acts of ethnic cleansing in modern history, deporting over 230,000 Crimean Tatars f...

Date

May 18, 1944

Location

Crimea, Soviet Union

Key people

Crimean Tatars, Lavrentiy Beria, Ayse

Why it matters

This article distinguishes itself from Wikipedia by centering Crimean Tatar voices through direct quotations from survivors like Ayşe and Mustafa Dzhemilev, while integrating declass...

What was Ethnic cleansing?

Ethnic cleansing is the systematic forced removal of ethnic, racial, or religious groups from a given area, with the intent of making the society ethnically homogeneous. Along with direct removal such as deportation or population transfer, it also includes indirect methods aimed at forced migration by coercing the victim group to flee and preventing its return, such as murder, rape, and property destruction. Both the definition and charge of ethnic cleansing are often disputed, with some researchers including and others excluding coercive assimilation or mass killings as a means of depopulating an area of a particular group, or calling it a euphemism for genocide or cultural genocide. Although scholars do not agree on which events constitute ethnic cleansing, many instances have occurred throughout history.

Expulsion of Nagorno-Karabakh Armenians in September 2023
Expulsion of Nagorno-Karabakh Armenians in September 2023
Related books
The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine cover The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine Ilan Pappé · 2006 The slaughter of cities cover The slaughter of cities E. Michael Jones · 2003 Fires of hatred cover Fires of hatred Norman M. Naimark · 2001 Ethnic Cleansing cover Ethnic Cleansing Clotilde Pegorier · 2013 The Roots of Ethnic Cleansing in Europe cover The Roots of Ethnic Cleansing in Europe H. Zeynep Bulutgil · 2016
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Background and consequences

The term was first used to describe Albanian nationalist treatment of the Kosovo Serbs in the 1980s, and entered widespread use during the Yugoslav Wars in the 1990s. Since then, the term has gained widespread acceptance due to journalism.

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Related on thisDay

Crimean Tatar Deportation — May 18, 1944

230,000 Crimean Tatars vanished in 1944 as Soviet forces swept through Crimea, leaving devastation in their wake that lasted decades

Use the dated article for the day-specific account; use these references to check the event record and explore its wider historical context.

Date article: Crimean Tatar Deportation — May 18, 1944Wikipedia source
Cite this page
MLA

“Ethnic cleansing.” thisDay, thisday.info/history/ethnic-cleansing/. Accessed 19 Oct. 2026.

APA

Ethnic cleansing. (n.d.). thisDay. Retrieved October 19, 2026, from https://thisday.info/history/ethnic-cleansing/

Chicago

“Ethnic cleansing.” thisDay. Accessed October 19, 2026. https://thisday.info/history/ethnic-cleansing/.

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